BS  2417  . S7  M6  1923 
Montgomery,  John  Harold. 

The  social  message  of  Jesus 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 
in  2019  with  funding  from 
Princeton  Theological  Seminary  Library 


https://archive.org/details/socialmessageofjOOmont 


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Batub  <£.  Botonep,  General  €bitor 

COLLEGE  SERIES  GEORGE  HERBERT  BETTS,  Editor 


THE  SOCIAL  MESSAGE 

OF  JESUS 


V 

JOHN  H.  MONTGOMERY 

Professor  Religious  Education 
Uuiversity  Southern  California 

Introduction  by 
SHAILER  MATHEWS 


'taik&wiMpsmi 


THE  ABINGDON  PRESS 

NEW  YORK  CINCINNATI 


Copyright,  1923,  by 
JOHN  H.  MONTGOMERY 
All  Rights  Reserved 


Printed  in  the  United  States  of  America 


CONTENTS 


) 


PAGE 

Introduction .  7 

Preface .  o 


PART  ONE 

THE  SOCIAL  IMPLICATIONS  OF  THE  GOSPEL 

CHAPTER 

I.  The  Social  Question . .  13 

Definition — A  modem  problem,  truly  significant  of 
this  age — Radical  in  its  nature,  examining  the  very 
foundations  of  society — A  moral  issue  growing  out  of 
the  recognition  of  the  social  need. 

II.  The  Master’s  Appraisal  of  Life .  22 

What  is  an  authority? — Jesus  experienced  life  exten¬ 
sively — He  observed  accurately  and  with  keen  pene¬ 
tration — He  occupied  a  detached  position  with 
relation  to  life — His  view  was  authoritative  and 
divine — It  is  worth  while  to  heed  his  appraisal. 

III.  The  Worth  of  a  Man .  32 

Two  ways  of  approaching  social  problems;  as  affect¬ 
ing  individuals;  considering  the  mass — Both  are 
needed,  but  Jesus  uses  mainly  the  former— -Jesus’ 
high  appreciation  of  men  evidenced  by  his  willing¬ 
ness  to  talk  to  individuals — The  individualism  of  his 
parables  and  teachings — A  high  regard  for  person¬ 
ality,  the  “hall  mark’’  of  Christianity. 

IV.  Brotherhood .  42 

Fellowship  and  the  solidarity  of  the  human  family — 
Jesus  would  go  to  great  lengths  to  preserve  soli¬ 
darity — He  identifies  himself  with  the  race — Social 
conscience  is  implied — The  physical,  mental,  and 
moral  interrelations — Certain  tendencies  exclusive  of 
solidarity — The  Christ  spirit  must  prevail. 


THE  SOCIAL  MESSAGE  OF  JESUS 


CHAPTER  PAGE 

V.  The  Master's  Kingdom  Ideals .  53 


His  intimate  yet  detached  viewpoint:  the  place  of 
clear  vision  and  hope — Individual  soundness  at  the 
basis  of  social  improvement — Personal  salvation 
needed — The  reclamation  of  social  relations  through 
service — Service  a  life  principle  proclaimed  and  prac¬ 
ticed  by  Jesus — Orientation  with  respect  to  God — 

The  Master’s  purpose  to  do  God’s  will. 

VI.  A  New  Dynamic . .  63 

The  simple  plan  of  social  change — Contrast  with 
other  social  plans — An  amazing  purpose — Transfor¬ 
mation  of  life  in  two  aspects — Christian  love  an  ade¬ 
quate  motive  power. 

VII.  Is  There  Progress? .  74 

Reasons  for  thinking  that  social  change  is  con¬ 
templated  in  the  plan  of  Jesus — The  social  duties 
laid  upon  His  followers — The  original  aim  of  the 
church — Position  of  present-day  individualists — 
Four  tests  of  the  essential  Christianity  of  social 
institutions. 


PART  TWO 

SOME  PRACTICAL  APPLICATIONS  OF  THE 
GOSPEL’S  TEACHING 

VIII.  The  Family . .  87 

An  ancient  and  important  institution — Divorce  a 
world-wide  evil — Effect  of  changed  industrial  con¬ 
ditions — Socialization  of  family  functions — Entrance 
of  women  into  industry — Christ’s  ideals  of  the  fam¬ 
ily  and  marriage:  permanence,  highly  esteemed, 
divinely  appointed. 

IX.  The  School .  98 

Its  gradual  democratization — Connection  between 
education  and  the  church — Weakness  in  religious 
education — Peril  of  the  situation — Christian  stan¬ 
dards  in  education. 


CONTENTS 


5 


CHAPTER  PAGE 

X.  The  State .  108 


Definition  and  classification — Functions  of  the  state 
—  War  —  Legislation  —  Punishment  —  Relations  of 
Christians  to  the  state. 

XI.  The  Shop  and  the  Mart . .  118 

The  complexity  of  industrial  life — Child  labor, 
extent  and  results — Women  and  girls  in  gainful  oc¬ 
cupations,  results  and  causes — The  grim  toll  of 
industrial  accidents — Sweat  shops — Practical  mam- 
monism. 

XII.  Play .  129 

Changed  attitudes  toward  recreation  and  amuse¬ 
ments — Educational  value  of  play — Increased  leisure 
— Attitude  of  criminologists — The  church  and  amuse¬ 
ments — The  problem  of  commercialized  amusements 
— Socialized  pageantry — Other  activities. 

PART  THREE 

1 

THE  CHALLENGE  TO  THE  CHURCH 

XIII.  A  Spiritual  Basis  for  Social  Ideals .  143 

The  value  of  spiritual  ideals;  their  effect  in  prevent¬ 
ing  a  materialistic  emphasis — A  spiritual  basis  essen¬ 
tial  to  successful  social  reform — Contentment  needs 
a  spiritual  basis — The  spiritual  lays  hold  on  power — 

The  social  message  does  not  minimize  the  personal 
gospel. 

XIV.  The  Challenge  to  the  Church .  152 

Evidenced  by  the  present  critical  conditions — The 
gospel’s  message  of  brotherhood  a  further  evidence — 

The  church  is  also  challenged  by  a  disposition  to 
ignore  it  as  a  social  factor — Opposition  of  some 
social  leaders — Foreign  conceptions  of  the  church — 
Responsibility  of  the  church  for  this  estrangement — 

Use  of  criticism — Forces  of  evil  threaten  the  very 
existence  of  the  church — Failure  of  some  Christians 
to  understand  this  challenge. 


6 


CONTENTS 


CHAPTER  PAGE 

XV.  The  Chance  of  the  Church .  163 


An  opportunity  for  leadership — A  fourfold  social 
program;  instruction  about  social  problems;  a  study 
of  the  gospel;  direct  cooperation;  development  of 
leaders — The  church’s  greatest  task  is  setting  up 
ideals — Its  contribution  will  be  to  overcome  mate¬ 
rialism. 


Bibliography 


172 


INTRODUCTION 


The  nineteenth  century  discovered  the  historical 
Christ.  The  twentieth  century  is  beginning  to  take 
him  seriously.  Systematic  theology  has  been  more 
interested  in  the  gospel  about  Jesus  than  in  the 
gospel  which  he  himself  preached.  The  result  has 
been  that  the  social  bearing  of  Christianity  has 
been,  one  might  almost  say,  incidental  to  its  inter¬ 
est  in  post-mortem  salvation.  Strictly  speaking, 
there  is  only  one  gospel,  but  it  has  social  as  well 
as  individual  application.  There  is  no  necessity 
of  conflict  between  preparation  for  life  after  death 
and  preparation  for  life  in  society.  Jesus  makes 
no  such  distinction.  It  is  only  misunderstanding 
which  can  account  for  the  charge  that  those  who 
believe  that  the  message  of  Jesus  is  applicable  to 
society  are  belittling  the  need  of  the  conversion  of 
the  individual.  On  the  contrary,  some  of  the  most 
insistent  pleas  for  the  development  of  a  Christ- 
like  attitude  through  faith  will  be  found  in  vol¬ 
umes  concerned  with  what  has  loosely  been  called 
the  social  gospel. 

It  is  well  to  emphasize  the  fact  that  the  ethics 
of  Jesus  rested  upon  his  religion.  It  is  useless  to 
talk  about  the  finality  of  love  if  God  himself  is  a 
blind  force  or  merely  a  heartless  Creator.  It  is 
religious  faith  to  which  the  teaching  of  Jesus  appeals, 
not  only  as  a  basis  for  ideals,  but  as  the  source  of 
power  for  enduring  the  self-sacrifice  which  those 
ideals  involve.  Such  an  attitude  is  far  enough 
from  that  of  a  mere  student  of  society  or  a  mere 

7 


8 


INTRODUCTION 


writer  of  Utopias.  The  kingdom  of  God  has  to  be 
made  up  of  men  who  possess  love  like  God’s.  To 
get  men  to  grow  like  God  is  Jesus’  method  of  making 
them  suitable  material  for  a  social  order.  The 
principles  of  the  social  order  grow  out  of  the  same 
conception. 

Approach  to  the  social  implications  and  applica¬ 
tions  of  such  a  fundamental  religious  attitude  lies, 
on  the  one  side,  through  a  knowledge  of  the  teach¬ 
ing  of  Jesus  and  on  the  other  side  through  a  knowl¬ 
edge  of  economics  and  sociology.  A  noble  religious 
purpose  must  not  be  used  to  justify  unintelligent 
social  ethic.  It  is  one  thing  to  want  to  be  good 
and  another  thing  to  be  wise  as  well  as  good. 

The  present  volume  illustrates  these  general  con¬ 
siderations.  A  generation  has  passed  since  the  first 
modern  writings  on  the  social  teaching  of  Jesus 
began  to  appear,  but  if  the  present  volume  lacks 
the  novelty  of  pioneering,  it  has  the  advantage  of 
experience.  Unless  I  quite  mistake,  it  represents 
in  clear  and  unbiased  fashion  the  general  results 
of  modern  research  in  its  field.  It  will  serve  an 
admirable  purpose  if  it  can  help  the  generation 
that  must  remake  our  world  interest  itself  in  the 
principles  of  Jesus  Christ.  The  world  has  tried 
pretty  nearly  every  means  of  maintaining  the  social 
structure.  The  tragedies  attending  every  unethical 
method  ought  to  commend  that  proposed  by  Jesus 
Christ. 


Shailer  Mathews. 


PREFACE 


Since  the  pioneer  works  of  Peabody,  Mathews, 
and  Rauschenbusch  appeared,  now  nearly  a  score 
of  years  ago,  many  phases  of  the  relationship  of 
Christianity  to  social  progress  have  been  discussed. 
The  suspicion  with  which  these  earlier  studies  were 
too  often  regarded  has  given  way  to  wide-spread 
interest.  On  the  whole  the  church  to-day  believes 
in  social  progress  and  that  true  and  permanent 
progress  is  conditioned  on  the  principles  of  Jesus1 
gospel.  Christian  people  are  acquiring  social  vision, 
and  the  enlarging  circle  of  problems  is  regarded  as 
offering  wider  scope  for  making  practical  applica¬ 
tion  of  Christian  ideals. 

With  the  increasing  number  of  books  treating 
specific  questions  there  has  seemed  to  be  room  for 
a  manual  to  furnish  an  introduction  to  a  study  of 
the  gospel  and  its  social  message.  During  the 
past  ten  years  the  writer  has  led  some  dozen  classes 
in  such  a  study,  going  over  the  field  of  the  present 
text  in  whole  or  in  part.  The  book  is  developed 
from  the  outlines  used  and  the  lecture  material 
accumulated  in  these  studies.  It  has  been  tested 
out  in  syllabus  form  with  university  classes  and 
church  training  school  groups. 

Frequent  quotations  from  and  citations  to  other 
works  have  been  used  deliberately,  for  the  writer 
feels  that  to  bring  the  student  into  contact  with 
these  master  writers  will  be  a  real  service.  The 
purpose  is  to  supply  a  guide  for  class  discussions. 
To  this  end  many  “Exercises”  have  been  arranged 

9 


10 


PREFACE 


which  are  intended  to  stimulate  thought  and  set 
the  members  of  the  class  to  work.  The  teacher 
should  use  these  as  the  basis  of  discussions  and  as 
introductory  to  the  study  of  the  chapter  itself. 
A  tested  and  valuable  plan  is  to  occasionally  assign 
some  of  these  exercises  to  be  answered  briefly  in 
writing. 

The  “Topics  for  Further  Study”  are  suitable  for 
longer  papers  or  reports,  especially  by  more  mature 
persons  such  as  college  students. 

It  is  felt  that  sufficient  range  of  treatment  has 
been  provided  so  that  this  book  may  be  used  by 
Sunday-school  classes  of  young  people,  college 
classes,  teacher-training  classes  and  many  other 
groups  of  Christian  workers. 

The  writer  is  indebted  to  many  sources  which 
space  will  not  permit  him  to  mention  in  detail. 
His  primary  inspiration  in  the  whole  subject  was 
from  the  works  of  Dr.  Shailer  Mathews,  Professor 
Walter  Rauschenbusch,  and  Professor  Francis  G. 
Peabody. 

Dr.  Emory  S.  Bogardus  and  Dr.  John  G.  Hill  have 
read  the  manuscript  and  given  many  helpful  sugges¬ 
tions.  Their  assistance  is  gratefully  acknowledged. 

J.  H.  M. 


PART  ONE 

THE  SOCIAL  IMPLICATIONS  OF  THE  GOSPEL 

“The  true  light  was  that  which  illumines  every  man  by 
its  coming  into  the  world.  He  was  in  the  world,  and  the 
world  came  into  existence  through  Him,  and  the  world 
did  not  recognize  Him.  He  came  to  the  things  that  were 
His  own,  and  His  own  people  gave  him  no  welcome.  But 
all  who  have  received  Him,  to  them — that  is,  to  those 
who  trust  in  His  name — He  has  given  the  privilege  of 
becoming  children  of  God”  (John  1:9-12,  Weymouth 
Version  New  Testament). 

“Jesus  came  into  Galilee,  proclaiming  God’s  Good 
News.  ‘The  time  has  fully  come,’  He  said,  ‘and  the 
Kingdom  of  God  is  close  at  hand:  repent  and  believe 
this  Good  News’  ”  (Mark  1:14,  15,  Weymouth  Version 
New  Testament). 

It  is  in  the  conviction  that  the  Light  is  for  the  illumina¬ 
tion  of  the  deep  shadows  of  human  society  that  these 
chapters  have  been  written. 

Part  One  deals  with  the  social  idealism  of  Jesus.  After 
a  necessary  discussion  of  the  term  “Social  Question”  it 
considers  the  value  of  Jesus’  opinion  and  the  fundamen¬ 
tal  social  conceptions  of  his  teaching.  His  social  vision  is 
binocular — it  perceives  both  the  individual  and  society. 
Personality  and  social  solidarity  are  coequal  in  import¬ 
ance.  We  then  seek  further  and  find  great  life  ideals  for 
the  social  relations  of  individuals.  These  are  The  Ap¬ 
proach  to  Life  from  Within,  The  Reclamation  of  Social 
Relations  Through  Service,  the  Orientation  of  Life  with 
God,  and  that  Love  is  the  sufficient  dynamic.  Specific 
application  to  problems  is  left  for  later  consideration. 
What  is  sought  now  is  the  statement  of  the  social  axioms 
which  form  the  point  of  departure  for  Jesus’  social  mes¬ 
sage. 


CHAPTER  I 


THE  SOCIAL  QUESTION 

What  is  the  social  question?  Into  what  fields 
will  its  study  lead  us?  What  are  its  characteristics? 
What  problems  are  involved?  What  message  may 
we  expect  to  find  in  the  gospel  for  the  conditions 
of  modern  life?  These  are  among  the  questions 
which  come  to  mind  in  undertaking  an  examination 
of  the  social  bearing  of  the  words  of  Jesus  as  they 
are  recorded  in  the  New  Testament.  For  a  short 
definition  perhaps  there  is  none  better  than  that 
of  Professor  Peabody.  “The  social  question,”  he 
says,  “in  its  most  elementary  form,  is  approached 
when  one  becomes  aware  among  the  problems  of 
conduct  that  he  is  not  alone,  but  a  person  among 
other  persons,  a  member  of  the  social  order,  a  part 
of  a  social  whole.”  Another  statement  is,  “That 
collection  of  problems  which  have  arisen  under 
the  burden  of  social  maladjustment.” 

Human  relationships  mean  mutual  responsibil¬ 
ities  and  duties;  duties  neglected  mean  burdens  for 
another  to  bear.  The  chafing,  the  sense  of  injustice, 
the  lack  of  opportunity,  the  lowering  of  the  level 
of  living,  the  dimming  of  ideals,  on  the  one  hand; 
the  greed,  the  selfishness,  the  ruthlessness,  the  lust 
for  power,  on  the  other — these  are  the  elements  of 
the  social  question.  It  is  not  simply  a  question  of 
poverty,  though  it  is  there  that  the  pressure  is 

13 


i4  THE  SOCIAL  MESSAGE  OF  JESUS 


heaviest.  Neither  are  these  problems  merely  those 
of  commercial  life;  the  church  also  feels  the  impact. 

There  are  many  characteristics  of  the  present  age 
which  might  be  selected  as  historically  significant. 
Among  these  may  be  mentioned  scientific  advance, 
popular  government,  the  printing  press,  “big” 
business,  popular  education,  transportation  and 
communication.  More  truly  significant  than  any 
of  these  is  the  modern  interest  in  the  social  question. 
In  fact,  the  others  gain  in  importance  because  of 
this  interest.  The  discoveries  of  science  gain  their 
greatest  significance  when  they  are  applied  to 
modify  the  conditions  of  life.  The  telephone,  radium, 
improved  transportation,  anaesthetics,  poison  gas, 
commercial  dye  stuffs  are  but  a  few  of  the  con¬ 
tributions  of  science.  And  of  these,  as  of  most 
scientific  discoveries  and  developments,  it  may  be 
said  that  they  are  important  only  as  they  have 
affected  human  happiness,  comfort,  health,  and 
welfare.  The  same  is  true  of  the  other  things  named 
as  historically  significant  of  these  present  days. 
Back  of  all  of  them  is  human  society. 

A  modem  problem. — It  is  indeed  a  modern 
problem.  This  is  not  because  ill-treatment  is 
something  new  in  human  relations.  One  has  but 
to  remember  Egyptian  bondage  or  Jewish  slavery 
to  see  that  the  problems  of  human  relationship 
have  always  existed.  Consider  ancient  Rome,  or 
England  in  the  Middle  Ages,  or  colonial  America, 
and  the  same  facts  are  seen.  The  present  man¬ 
ifestations  are,  however,  modern.  Factory,  labor 
union,  saloon,  slum,  millionaire,  politics,  are  all 
words  of  the  present.  Widespread  interest  in  the 
problem  is  also  modern.  There  have  been  indi- 


THE  SOCIAL  QUESTION 


i5 


viduals  in  every  age  with  a  healthy  discontent  for 
the  social  condition  about  them.  There  have  been 
many  Ruskins.  But  widespread  interest  and  the 
determination  to  find  a  cure  is  of  to-day. 

It  is  of  importance  that  we  understand  the  nature 
of  the  modernity  of  the  social  question,  otherwise 
we  may  be  inclined  to  wonder  whether  the  gospel 
can  have  any  message  for  to-day.  Jesus  never  saw 
a  factory  nor  encountered  a  labor  organizer.  If 
the  modern  problems  are  entirely  new,  then  we 
might  reasonably  doubt  whether  his  words  would 
have  much  application  to  them.  If,  on  the  other 
hand,  these  troubles  are  essentially  old  and  only 
new  in  their  form  of  manifestation,  then  a  message 
may  be  expected  from  the  gospel. 

Radical  interest  shown. — In  the  past  all  attempts 
at  social  reform  have  been  largely  ameliorative, 
but  another  temper  is  found  to-day.  The  interest 
is  radical  in  the  best  sense  of  the  word.  It  seeks 
to  get  to  the  root  of  the  matter.  The  question  is 
not  so  much  of  mitigating  the  evils  of  the  existing 
order  as  whether  the  existing  order  shall  be  per¬ 
mitted  to  continue.  As  one  writer  puts  it,  the 
interest  is  not  in  4 ‘social  therapeutics  but  in  social 
bacteriology  and  hygiene.”  For  example,  we  are 
less  interested  in  finding  the  best  methods  of  doing 
charitable  work  than  in  discovering  the  reason  why 
poverty  exists.  Examination  is  being  made  of  the 
pillars  of  the  present  order,  and  the  question  is 
being  asked  whether  it  is  worth  while  to  try  to  mend 
them  and  prop  them  up. 

Modern  civilization  rests  on  three  great  institu¬ 
tions,  that  is,  the  family,  private  property,  and  the 
state.  Each  of  these  is  being  critically  examined 


16  THE  SOCIAL  MESSAGE  OF  JESUS 


to-day  and  its  right  to  existence  challenged.  There 
are  those  who  confidently  predict  the  abolition  of 
each  of  these,  and  their  arguments  are  interesting 
even  if  not  convincing.  The  significant  thing,  how¬ 
ever,  is  not  so  much  what  these  ideas  are  as  that 
there  are  such  ideas.  The  important  point  is  that 
there  are  those  who  are  willing  to  entirely  abandon 
the  existing  social  order,  to  reconstruct  it  along 
entirely  new  lines,  to  give  up  institutions  which  are 
centuries  old — to  do  anything,  in  fact,  that  promises 
a  higher  type  of  life  and  wider  opportunities  for 
mankind.  All  this  is  viewed  with  the  utmost  alarm 
by  many  people.  To  them  it  just  means  discontent 
and  dissatisfaction  and  disaster.  Such  people  are 
advocates  of  the  doctrine  of  laissez  faire.  They 
are  the  stand-patters.  Their  motto  is,  “Let  well 
enough  alone.”  Their  conservative  natures  are 
averse  to  change,  and  all  this  talk  of  uprooting 
things  fills  them  with  terror.  Another  group  see  in 
these  plans  the  dawn  of  hope;  at  last  the  shackles 
are  being  broken.  Usefulness,  not  age,  is  their 
standard  of  value.  Now,  whichever  way  our  mental 
processes  lead  us,  whether  we  are  conservative  or 
of  those  who  easily  welcome  change,  this  much 
must  certainly  be  clear:  the  interest  in  the  modern 
social  question  is  real  and  deep;  it  is  radical  in  its 
nature. 

There  is  hope  in  this,  for  when  things  are  wrong 
discontent  is  the  best  possible  thing.  The  sick  man 
who  has  no  symptoms,  feels  no  discomfort,  is  in  a 
desperate  state.  Mistakes  will  be  made,  of  course. 
The  attempt  will  be  made  to  abandon  some  things 
which  should  be  mended,  and  to  hold  on  to  some 
things  which  we  could  well  afford  to  let  go.  There 


THE  SOCIAL  QUESTION 


i7 


will  be  mistakes  of  the  head  as  well  as  of  the  heart. 
Some  men  under  the  sheep’s  wool  of  an  assumed 
interest  in  the  social  welfare,  will  try  to  hide  the 
wolf  of  selfish  purposes.  However,  out  of  all  this 
interest  we  may  hope  for  real  progress.  One  reason 
for  this  optimistic  view  is  found  in  the  third  char¬ 
acteristic  of  the  social  question,  namely,  that  it  is 
essentially  a  moral  question. 

Every  problem  moral  at  its  base. — It  is  worth 
careful  note  that  the  interest  in  these  problems 
does  not  arise  out  of  the  bad  conditions  themselves. 
There  is  no  “social  question”  on  the  Congo  or  in 
the  heart  of  China.  As  Professor  Peabody  puts  it, 
“The  problem  of  social  justice  does  not  grow  out 
of  the  worst  social  conditions,  but  the  best.  It  is 
not  a  sign  of  social  decadence  but  of  social  vital¬ 
ity.”  The  social  problem,  as  such,  emerges  when 
contrasts  are  drawn  between  good  and  bad  con¬ 
ditions  and  when  the  moral  values  of  the  issues  are 
discerned.  In  fact,  no  vital  question  of  human 
welfare  is  purely  economic.  A  moral  issue  is  always 
involved,  and  no  such  question  is  finally  settled 
until  there  is  recognition  of  this  moral  issue  as  such. 
For  example,  the  decision  in  the  Civil  War  went  to 
the  North  because  it  had  more  men,  more  money, 
and  more  munitions.  But  the  reason  that  slavery 
is  no  longer  an  issue  is  not  found  in  that  victory; 
it  is,  rather,  to  be  found  in  a  nation-wide  convic¬ 
tion  that  slavery  is  wrong. 

The  usual  arguments  offered  in  favor  of  the 
liquor  traffic  are  economic — so  many  dollars  in¬ 
vested,  so  much  paid  in  wages,  so  much  of  tax 
income  for  the  state.  These  arguments  are  often 
properly  met  by  other  statements  of  economic 


18  THE  SOCIAL  MESSAGE  OF  JESUS 


waste,  setting  forth  the  cost  of  crime  and  poverty. 
But  in  the  end  this  question  will  not  be  finally 
settled  until  there  is  a  powerful  conviction  on  the 
part  of  most  people  that  the  thing  is  wrong,  not 
only  economically  but  morally. 

Again,  the  labor  question  is  not  essentially  a 
matter  of  dollars,  of  wages  on  the  one  hand,  or  of 
dividends  on  the  other.  It  is  a  matter  of  justice 
and  the  proper  treatment  of  a  brother  man.  Purely 
economic  as  industrial  disputes  may  seem  to  be 
in  many  aspects,  the  crucial  point  is  really  always 
moral.  The  possible  rent  and  return  on  the  invest¬ 
ment  are  not  the  sole  considerations  in  building  an 
apartment  house.  The  conditions  of  life,  sanita¬ 
tion,  light,  safety,  comfort — these  are  at  least  equally 
important.  The  landlord  who  fails  to  recognize 
this  and  who  acquires  profit  at  the  expense  of  his 
fellow  beings  is  unsocial  and  unchristian  in  these 
relations. 

So  in  whatever  direction  we  turn,  whatever 
problems  we  consider,  we  find  that  the  issues  are 
not  purely  economic,  but  social  and  moral  as  well. 
In  this  fact  is  found  the  hope  of  final  victory.  It 
also  points  the  way  to  the  gospel  as  a  source  of 
help.  Surely,  in  the  solution  of  these  fundamentally 
moral  questions  it  will  not  do  to  neglect  the  words 
of  the  Great  Teacher  of  Morals. 

The  far  reach  of  the  social  question. — The  social 
question  is,  then,  as  broad  as  human  interest,  and 
is  manifested  wherever  failure  in  mutual  relations 
has  resulted  in  undue  and  undeserved  burdens. 
It  extends  to  all  the  institutions  of  civilization. 
The  home,  the  church,  education,  business,  and 
pleasure  alike  make  their  contributions  to  the  group 


THE  SOCIAL  QUESTION 


19 


of  problems  comprehended  under  this  statement. 
No  man  is  so  rich,  so  poor,  so  wise  or  so  ignorant 
as  to  be  outside  the  circle. 

We  see  that  there  are  three  outstanding  char¬ 
acteristics  of  the  social  question:  its  modernness, 
its  radical  nature,  and  its  moral  quality.  These 
must  each  be  kept  in  mind  if  we  are  to  give  a  full 
account  of  the  matter.  As  noted  above,  there  is 
nothing  new  or  modern  about  the  bald  facts  of 
human  inability  to  get  along  well  together.  It  is 
an  outcropping  of  “natural  religion”  as  old  as  Cain 
and  Abel.  The  same  spirit  of  envy  that  sent  Naboth 
to  his  death  still  operates  to-day.  The  manifesta¬ 
tions  are  new.  The  deep-seated,  precedent-destroy¬ 
ing  radical  interest  is  of  to-day.  The  clearly  defined 
moral  issues  are  more  insistently  set  forth  than 
ever  before. 

This  is  the  social  question  with  which  the  gospel 
of  Jesus  deals — -not  in  detail,  but  in  general  terms. 
We  shall  find  there  no  program  of  welfare  work;  no 
discussion  of  specific  problems  for  the  most  part. 
We  shall  search  in  vain  for  exact  terms  of  agree¬ 
ment  between  capital  and  labor.  What  we  shall 
find  will  be  statements  of  fundamental  truth  so 
simply  given  that  their  very  simplicity  has  caused 
them  to  be  neglected.  The  Golden  Rule  has 
seemed  so  elemental  that  men  have  passed  it  by  in 
search  of  some  profound  and  intricate  guide  to 
agreement. 

Our  business  and  that  of  the  church,  as  will  appear 
in  a  later  chapter,  is  this:  To  master  on  the  one 
hand  the  spirit  and  purport  of  Jesus’  teaching,  and, 
on  the  other,  to  become  familiar  with  the  life  con¬ 
ditions  of  the  great  human  family.  From  this  basis 


20  THE  SOCIAL  MESSAGE  OF  JESUS 


we  may  proceed  with  some  confidence  to  apply 
the  teachings  to  the  conditions. 

Exercises 

1.  Name  five  problems  which  have  arisen  from 

“social  maladjustment. ^ 

2.  What  is  the  most  common  “unsocial’7  act? 

3.  Give  some  reasons  for  feeling  that  interest  in 

social  welfare  is  increasing. 

4.  Have  any  “new”  social  abuses  developed  under 

modern  industry? 

5.  What  is  meant  by  “the  interest  is  not  in  social 

therapeutics  but  in  social  bacteriology  and 
hygiene”? 

6.  Consider  the  foundations  of  society: 

(a)  What  are  the  essential  institutions  of 

modern  civilization? 

(b)  Is  it  probable  that  any  of  these  will  soon 

be  abolished? 

7.  Is  labor  agitation  valuable? 

8.  Is  age  a  sign  of  value  in  a  social  institution? 

9.  Is  it  best  to  be  conservative  or  progressive? 

10.  Compare  the  social  situations  of  the  following: 

A  working  man  of  the  first  century  and  of 
to-day;  a  citizen  of  New  York  and  of  Shanghai; 
a  farm  hand  in  Kansas  and  a  mechanic  in  the 
Ford  automobile  factory. 

11.  Where  would  you  expect  to  find  the  worst  social 

conditions?  where  the  best?  In  which  place 
could  improvement  be  most  easily  secured? 

12.  Is  it  true  that  no  question  is  purely  economic? 

13.  Can  you  cite  a  social  issue  involving  no  moral 

considerations? 


THE  SOCIAL  QUESTION 


21 


14.  Has  the  Bible  anything  to  say  about  industrial 
accidents?  Does  it  give  any  valuable  prin¬ 
ciples  for  dealing  with  their  prevention? 

Topics  for  Further  Study 

1.  Compare  the  lot  of  a  workingman  in  the  first 

century  with  that  of  one  in  America  to-day. 

2.  The  slums  of  Jerusalem. 

3.  Has  the  family  outlived  its  usefulness? 

4.  Social  movements  outside  of  Christian  influence. 

5.  The  modern  social  problem  and  the  industrial 

revolution. 

Suggested  Readings 

Batten,  The  Social  Task  of  Christianity ,  pp.  33-37. 
Peabody,  Jesus  Christ  and  the  Social  Question ,  pp. 
1-12. 

Whitaker,  The  Gospel  at  Work  in  Modern  Life , 
Chapter  I. 


CHAPTER  II 


THE  MASTER’S  APPRAISAL  OF  LIFE 

In  the  suburbs  of  a  beach  city  in  California  there 
lived  a  man  who  knew  a  great  deal  about  seashells. 
Not  long  ago  there  was  held  in  this  same  city  a 
meeting  of  a  society  of  conchologists,  but  for  some 
reason  this  man  refused  to  go.  The  society,  however, 
took  a  recess  and  went  to  seek  him. 

There  is  no  man  in  the  world  whose  opinion  about 
electric  storage  batteries  is  more  valuable  than 
that  of  Thomas  A.  Edison.  Half  a  dozen  years  or 
so  ago  he  gave  a  newspaper  interview  on  the  sub¬ 
ject  of  immortality.  Tests  made  of  various  audi¬ 
ences  by  the  writer  indicate  that  not  ten  people 
in  a  hundred  remember  having  seen  this  interview 
in  print,  and  not  one  in  a  hundred  can  tell  what 
he  said. 

We  find  on  the  program  of  a  high-school  com¬ 
mencement  an  oration  on  the  “Modern  Trend  of 
Industrialism,”  and  we  smile. 

A  witness  gives  his  testimony  in  court  and  is  then 
subjected  to  a  grilling  cross  examination,  through 
which  the  opposing  counsel  hopes  to  develop  some 
contradiction  or  mistake. 

A  writer  charges  a  “leak”  in  Wall  Street,  writes 
of  manipulations,  and  fills  many  pages  of  a  popular 
magazine  with  tales  of  “frenzied  finance.”  People 
adopt  the  term,  forget  the  author,  except  to  wonder 
what  he  got  out  of  it,  and  refuse  to  get  excited. 


THE  MASTER’S  APPRAISAL  OF  LIFE  23 


Speaking  with  authority. — What  is  an  authority? 
Whose  opinions  do  we  value?  To  insure  the  authori¬ 
tative  note  there  must  at  least  be  these  qualities: 
First,  detailed  knowledge  to  give  familiarity  with 
the  object  at  hand.  This  is  why  the  California 
conchologist  was  sought  out  by  his  fellow  scientists. 
It  also  explains  why  Edison’s  words  carry  great 
weight  in  one  field  and  but  little  in  another.  Then 
there  must  be  general  knowledge  gained  through 
experience  to  furnish  background  and  insure  good 
judgment.  The  high-school  graduate  may  put 
facts  together  in  a  logical  fashion,  but  we  fail  to  be 
impressed,  for  we  are  not  sure  of  his  sound  judg¬ 
ment.  He  has  no  background  of  life  experience. 
The  third  essential  is  accuracy.  If  the  testimony 
of  a  witness  is  shaken  even  in  minor  matters,  the 
whole  is  discredited.  Then,  lastly,  there  must  be 
disinterestedness.  We  do  not  trust  the  man  “with 
an  ax  to  grind,”  for  it  is  hard  for  him  to  be  fair  even 
if  he  is  honest. 

With  these  ideas  in  mind,  let  us  consider  the 
Master’s  appraisal  of  life  and  ask  if  it  has  value. 
It  is  recorded  of  him  that  when  he  discoursed 
of  prayer  and  false  teachers  and  obedience  the 
crowds  were  filled  with  amazement  at  his  teaching, 
“for  he  had  been  teaching  them  as  one  having 
authority,  and  not  as  their  scribes”  taught.1  When 
he  brings  his  report  and  impressions  of  life  and 
speaks  concerning  the  social  relations  of  men,  will 
it  carry  to  us  that  same  note  of  authority? 

Jesus  knew  and  understood  life. — Notice,  first  of 
all,  that  he  experienced  life.  In  three  short  years 
he  lived  more  than  some  folks  do  in  ten  times  as 


1  Matthew  7 :  29. 


24  THE  SOCIAL  MESSAGE  OF  JESUS 


long.  So  many  people  live  in  a  limited  circle.  Day 
after  day  and  year  after  year  they  talk  to  the  same 
sort  of  people,  attend  the  same  sort  of  meetings, 
hear  the  same  sort  of  preaching,  read  the  same  sort 
of  books  and  papers,  vote  for  the  same  sort  of 
politicians,  wear  the  same  sort  of  clothes,  eat  the 
same  sort  of  food,  and  think  the  same  sort  of 
thoughts.  Moving  from  city  to  city  may  change 
the  surroundings,  but  the  essential  routine  of  life 
is  the  same.  It  almost  seems  that  nothing  short 
of  a  world  war  can  jar  them  into  new  orbits.  Jesus, 
on  the  other  hand,  lived  intensely  and  with  a  wide 
range  of  experience.  He  met  all  sorts  of  people. 
Levi,  the  tax-gatherer;  Jairus,  a  president  of  the 
synagogue;  Mary,  Martha,  and  Lazarus,  well-to-do 
citizens  of  Bethany;  Nicodemus,  a  ruler  of  the 
Jews;  Herod,  king  of  Judaea;  the  group  of  fisher¬ 
men,  his  disciples;  Luke,  the  physician;  blind 
beggars  and  wretched  lepers  by  the  wayside;  Phar¬ 
isees  and  scribes;  Roman  soldiers  and  officers. 

This  list  but  suggests  the  variety  which  marked 
his  acquaintance  with  people.  Then  look  at  the 
places  where  he  is  found.  On  the  streets,  in  the 
Temple,  at  various  homes,  by  the  country  road¬ 
side,  at  the  market,  in  the  fields,  by  the  side  of 
lake  and  river,  at  feasts  and  weddings  and  funerals 
and  banquets.  It  is  to  be  remembered,  too,  that 
these  are  but  the  comparatively  few  incidents 
recorded  in  the  Gospels  and  that,  as  John  tells  us, 
“there  are  also  many  other  things  which  Jesus  did” 
— so  vast  a  number,  indeed,  that  if  they  were  all  de¬ 
scribed  in  detail,  “I  suppose  that  even  the  world  itself 
would  not  contain  the  books  that  should  be  written.”2 


2  John  21:25. 


THE  MASTER’S  APPRAISAL  OF  LIFE  25 


The  point,  however,  lies  not  so  much  in  the 
variety  of  people  he  met;  the  average  American 
child  of  twelve  years  possibly  has  had  more  oppor¬ 
tunities  for  social  contacts.  It  is,  rather,  in  the 
thoroughness  of  the  contacts,  in  the  use  he  made 
of  them.  He  used  to  the  utmost  his  opportunities 
of  learning  life.  No  incident  was  too  trivial  to  make 
its  contribution  to  his  store  of  knowledge  about 
human  beings.  We  can  feel  some  of  this  because 
of  his  instant  and  understanding  sympathy  with 
all  sorts  of  people  in  all  kinds  of  circumstances. 
Such  breadth  and  depths  of  appreciation  of  human 
needs  does  not  come  from  a  shallow  or  limited 
contact  with  life. 

Again  we  find  that  Jesus’  observation  of  life  is 
penetrating,  and  his  report  of  facts  and  estimate 
of  character  are  accurate.  In  this  connection  read 
again  these  incidents.  The  discussion  about  un¬ 
washed  hands,  in  Matthew  15:  1-20,  represents  the 
scribes  and  Pharisees  coming  to  him  with  a  crit¬ 
icism  of  the  disciples  for  their  neglect  of  a  ceremonial 
custom.  His  reply,  pointing  out  their  own  short¬ 
comings,  was  much  more  than  just  a  turning  of 
their  question  back  upon  themselves.  The  disciples 
were  deficient  in  mere  legal  formality,  but  the 
fault  of  the  scribes  lay  deeper,  as  Jesus  so  keenly 
observed.  Again,  in  Matthew  7:16  he  reasons 
clearly  about  judgment,  while  in  Matthew  23 :  1-33 
is  another  incisive  estimate  of  the  “blind  leaders 
of  the  blind.”  It  was  pretty  hard  for  a  Jew  to  see 
any  good  in  one  of  his  countrymen  who  grew  wealthy 
collecting  taxes  for  Rome,  but  Jesus  quickly  esti¬ 
mated  Zacchaeus  as  a  man  worth  a  visit  (Luke 
19:  1-10).  The  Sadducees  came  to  him  with  one 


26  THE  SOCIAL  MESSAGE  OF  JESUS 


of  their  endless  questions  about  the  resurrection 
(Matthew  22:23-33).  His  reply,  although  ignoring 
the  specific  question,  drove  to  the  very  heart  of 
the  whole  matter  and  laid  bare  their  ignorance  of 
their  own  Scriptures.  Again  Jesus  displayed  a  keen 
insight  into  their  purpose. 

Consider  just  one  other  of  the  many  examples 
of  the  accuracy  and  penetrating  power  found  in 
Jesus’  estimate  of  character.  In  John  3:  1-2 1  is 
found  the  account  of  the  profound  discussion  with 
Nicodemus.  This  learned  man  comes  to  him  with 
no  carping,  futile  questions  such  as  the  others, 
considered  already,  had  propounded.  Jesus  meets 
him  on  his  own  level  and  answers  him  fully  and 
profoundly.  It  is  illuminating  when  we  think  of 
the  mind  of  the  Master  to  note  how  he  quickly 
detected  insincerity  and  met  it  with  stinging  re¬ 
proof,  but  just  as  quickly  rewarded  real  interest 
with  an  answer  exactly  suited  to  the  questioner’s 
mental  ability. 

From  these  incidents  and  many  others  like  them 
we  learn  another  thing  about  the  Master’s  estimate 
of  life:  it  is  a  great  thing  to  observe  correctly;  it 
is  even  greater  to  be  able  to  think  correctly  about 
the  things  observed.  To  do  this  requires  good 
judgment.  Jesus’  power  in  this  direction  is  evi¬ 
denced  by  his  wise  replies. 

Notice  next  that  Jesus’  view  of  life  was  un¬ 
biased  and  comprehensive.  The  usual  engrossing 
personal  details  of  living  had  little  hold  upon  him. 
His  reply  to  the  would-be  follower  by  the  lakeside 
was  doubtless  primarily  for  the  purpose  of  testing 
his  sincerity,  but  it  also  puts  into  a  vivid  phrase 
this  same  fact:  “Foxes  have  holes  and  birds  have 


THE  MASTER’S  APPRAISAL  OF  LIFE  27 


nests,  but  the  Son  of  Man  has  nowhere  to  lay  His 
head.”  The  glimpses  of  his  family  life  which  we 
have  indicate  that  these  relations  were  ideal;  but 
nevertheless  these  family  ties  were  transcended  by 
his  interest  in  humanity.  (Matthew  12:46-50.) 
Our  views  of  life’s  problems  are  colored  by  our 
own  needs  and  circumstances.  It  is  almost  impossi¬ 
ble,  for  example,  to  think  clearly  and  correctly  about 
the  evident  power  of  wealth,  whether  our  bias  be 
that  of  poverty  or  possession.  We  are  constantly 
exposed  to  the  warping  influence  of  self-interest. 
Jesus  was  free  from  such  trammels.  He  was  of 
life,  knew  it  intimately,  felt  its  touch,  and  under¬ 
stood  its  cries  of  distress;  but  at  the  same  time  he 
was  free  from  the  entanglements  of  life  and  from 
its  cramping,  distorting,  dwarfing  influences.  Not 
that  he  never  felt  their  pull,  but,  rather,  that  he 
resisted  and  conquered  them. 

Finally,  his  view  of  life  is  authoritative  and 
divine.  Human  views  of  life  are  at  best  but  par¬ 
tial  guesses.  His  bears  the  stamp  of  authority. 
“My  teaching  does  not  belong  to  me,  but  comes 
from  Him  who  sent  me,”* * 3  he  says.  Again,  in  the 
high-priestly  prayer,  he  exclaims,  “The  truths  which 
thou  didst  teach  me  I  have  taught  them.  And 
they  have  received  them  and  have  known  for  cer¬ 
tain  that  I  came  out  from  thy  presence,  and  have 
believed  that  thou  didst  send  me.”4 

“In  his  teaching,  Jesus  rested  upon  his  own 
authority  as  absolute.  He  did  not  hesitate  to  place 


5  John  7:  16,  Weymouth  Version  New  Testament.  Used  by  per¬ 

mission  of  Congregational  Publication  Society,  American  distribu¬ 

tors. 

4  John  17:  6-8.  Weymouth  Version  New  Testament. 


28  THE  SOCIAL  MESSAGE  OF  JESUS 


his  own  word  above  the  Mosaic  law;  he  proclaimed 
his  message  now  as  his  own,  now  as  his  heavenly 
Father’s,  with  no  distinction;  he  taught  his  disciples 
to  look  to  him  as  their  only  means  of  entrance  into 
the  higher  life  (John  14:  16) — a  colossal  assumption 
surely,  if  he  were  but  a  man;  a  clear  statement 
and  a  challenge  to  all  the  ages,  sublime  in  its  bold¬ 
ness,  but  justified  by  the  divine  greatness  of  his 
character,  the  matchless  sublimity  of  his  teaching, 
and  proved  to  succeeding  generations  by  the  his¬ 
toric  success  of  his  work.”5 

The  Master’s  appraisal  of  life  has  value. — It  is 
worth  while  then  to  know  the  Master’s  appraisal 
of  life.  He  lived  intensely,  touching  life  at  many 
points  and  thereby  gaining  an  intimate  and  com¬ 
prehensive  knowledge  of  human  kind.  From  this 
knowledge  he  reports  accurately,  thus  establishing 
one  of  the  first  essentials  of  an  authoritative  state¬ 
ment.  Next  we  found  keenness  of  insight  and 
soundness  of  judgment  as  revealed  by  every  reported 
conversation.  These  are  also  to  be  added  to  the 
evidence  for  the  value  of  his  decisions.  Again,  his 
judgments  are  free  from  self-interest,  that  great 
warper  of  men’s  judgment.  His  intense  interest  in 
life  was  never  complicated  by  his  personal  prob¬ 
lems.  It  is  worth  while,  too,  to  know  that  the 
perfect  unity  with  the  Father  expressed  in  the 
words,  “I  and  my  Father  are  one,”  insures  that 
when  we  know  the  thought  and  plan  of  Jesus  we 
glimpse  the  thought  and  plan  of  God. 

One  might  acquire  great  technical  skill  as  a 
musician  and  be  ignorant  of  Beethoven  or  Liszt, 


BJenks’  Social  Significance  of  the  Teachings  of  Jesus ,  p.  39.  Asso 
ciation  Press,  New  York. 


THE  MASTER’S  APPRAISAL  OF  LIFE  29 


but  the  earnest  student  knows  the  work  of  the 
masters.  The  field  of  literature  is  rich  and  varied, 
and  wide  excursions  might  be  made  which  omitted 
familiarity  with  Shakespeare,  but  it  would  be  a 
strange  culture  which  neglected  the  Bard  of  Avon. 
It  is  possible  to  go  far  in  science  alone  or  by  fol¬ 
lowing  the  lesser  lights,  but  the  wise  seeker  after 
nature’s  secrets  sits  at  the  feet  of  Newton,  Agassiz, 
and  Pasteur.  When  we  study  mankind,  then,  can 
we  dare  to  neglect  the  One  who  in  a  few  words 
spoken  during  a  few  brief  years  transformed  human 
living? 

Often  on  a  winter  evening,  when  a  freezing  rain 
has  fallen,  the  ice-covered  twigs  and  branches  seem 
to  form  a  glittering  maze.  Then  turning  toward 
some  bright  light  the  reflections  are  such  that  a 
series  of  concentric  circles  are  seen  about  that 
light.  History  is  a  mass  of  confused,  apparently 
unrelated  events.  Human  life  is  a  perplexity,  a 
tangle.  Good  men  work  at  cross  purposes.  There 
seems  to  be  neither  law  nor  order  anywhere.  All 
is  a  tangle,  hopeless  and  discouraging.  Then  if  we 
can  but  fix  our  eyes  on  Jesus  Christ  all  these  twisted 
bits  of  human  existence  fall  into  ordered  relation¬ 
ship  to  each  other  and  to  him,  their  center  and 
pivot. 

“Show  me  Thy  face — I  shall  forget 
The  weary  days  of  yore, 

The  fretting  ghosts  of  vain  regret 
Shall  haunt  my  soul  no  more. 

All  doubts  and  fears  for  future  years 
In  quiet  trust  subside, 

And  naught  but  blest  content  and  calm 
Within  my  heart  abide.” 


(Anonymous.) 


30 


THE  SOCIAL  MESSAGE  OF  JESUS 


Exercises 

1.  Why  is  the  judgment  of  a  person  who  is  slow 

to  express  an  opinion  usually  valued  more 
highly  than  that  of  a  talkative  person? 

2.  Name  an  authority  in  music;  government; 

business.  What  constitutes  the  basis  of 
authority  in  each  case? 

3.  Should  the  head  of  a  business  concern  himself 

with  the  small  details  of  his  organization? 

4.  Is  breadth  of  an  acquaintance  essential  to  under¬ 

standing  life?  Does  it  insure  such  under¬ 
standing? 

5.  Give  an  original  example  of  the  warping  effect 

upon  judgment  of  self-interest. 

6.  Would  the  professional  opinion  of  a  physician 

seem  less  valuable  to  you  if  you  knew  that 
he  had  low  moral  standards?  of  a  musician? 
of  a  politician? 

7.  Of  two  persons,  one  with  broad  experience  and 

education  and  the  other  with  a  limited  out¬ 
look,  which  will  probably  form  the  most 
fixed  and  absolute  estimate  of  another  person? 
Which  will  form  the  most  accurate  estimate? 

8.  Give  an  original  reason  for  thinking  that  Jesus’ 

estimate  of  life  is  valuable. 

9.  Cite  incidents  from  Jesus’  life  showing 

(a)  His  broad  acquaintance  with  life. 

(b)  His  insight  into  character. 

(c)  His  clear  estimate  of  character. 

( d )  His  freedom  from  personal  bias. 

( e )  The  authoritative  note  in  his  statements. 

10.  Did  the  religious  insight  of  Jesus  reenforce  or 

diminish  his  social  feeling? 


THE  MASTER’S  APPRAISAL  OF  LIFE  31 


Topics  for  Further  Study 

1.  The  types  of  character  found  among  the  acquaint¬ 

ances  of  Jesus. 

2.  Were  Jesus’  power  of  penetration  and  keenness  of 

judgment  superhuman? 

3.  The  place  of  the  detached  view  in  social  service. 

4.  The  divine  plan  for  human  life  as  revealed  in 

Jesus’  teaching  and  example. 

5.  The  source  of  authority  in  Jesus’  teaching. 

Suggested  Readings 

Jenks,  Social  Significance  of  the  Teachings  of  Jesus , 
Study  II. 

Rauschenbusch,  Christianizing  the  Social  Order , 

pp.  40-47* 

Peabody,  Jesus  Christ  and  the  Social  Question , 
Chapter  1. 


CHAPTER  III 


THE  WORTH  OF  A  MAN 

The  solution  of  the  social  question  may  be 
approached  in  two  radically  differing  ways.  One 
concerns  itself  primarily  with  the  individual  and 
chooses  its  methods  accordingly.  Consideration 
is  given  to  his  happiness,  his  rights,  his  needs,  his 
duties,  and  his  development  in  character.  Society 
and  social  institutions  are  considered  to  exist  only 
that  they  may  serve  the  individual  and  when  they 
cease  so  to  function  are  felt  to  have  outlived  their 
usefulness.  A  school,  for  example,  may  be  an 
object  of  civic  pride,  its  buildings  an  ornament  to 
the  neighborhood,  and  its  teachers  accomplished 
members  of  the  community.  There  is,  however,  no 
real  reason  for  its  existence  unless  boys  and  girls 
are  gathered  under  its  roof  and  benefited  by  its 
instruction.  Where  there  is  an  entirely  adult  popu¬ 
lation  it  would  be  manifestly  absurd  to  maintain  a 
kindergarten.  Such  a  condition  does  actually  exist 
for  a  time  in  a  frontier  town  or  a  mining  camp. 
Under  this  theory,  when  readjustments  of  social 
relations  become  necessary,  they  must  commence 
with  the  individual. 

For  example,  consider  the  vexed  problem  of 
capital  and  labor.  This  method  would  ask  such 
questions  as:  What  is  a  fair  day’s  work?  How 
much  is  a  proper  wage?  What  is  a  sufficient  profit 

32 


THE  WORTH  OF  A  MAN 


33 


on  investment?  It  would  seek,  in  other  words, 
to  have  both  employer  and  employee  occupy  a 
right  attitude  toward  the  rights,  necessities,  and 
duties  of  the  other,  confident  that  they  can  work 
out  with  justice  to  both  in  all  the  details  of  the 
situation. 

The  other  view  takes  society  collectively  as  the 
object  of  interest  and  constructive  effort.  The 
individual  recedes  into  the  background;  becomes 
just  one  of  the  mass,  a  social  unit.  Reforms  are  to 
be  accomplished  “en  masse.”  Of  course,  ultimately 
individuals  will  be  benefited,  but  that  often  seems 
almost  a  secondary  matter.  The  process  proposed, 
at  least,  is  something  like  this:  Get  social  institu¬ 
tions  right,  make  the  adjustments,  correct  the 
errors  of  organization,  and  then  the  rights  of  the 
individual  will  be  conserved  and  his  happiness  and 
comfort  assured. 

Using  again  the  relation  of  capital  and  labor  as 
an  example,  this  method  of  seeking  a  solution  would 
endeavor  to  change  the  system  and  establish  new 
methods  of  cooperation  in  work.  It  recognizes,  of 
course,  the  need  of  a  changed  attitude  on  the  part 
of  individuals,  but  would  bring  that  about  by 
changing  the  outer  conditions  of  life. 

Any  complete  program  of  social  progress  must 
include  both  of  these  methods  to  some  extent.  As 
will  be  seen  later,  in  considering  some  of  the  pro¬ 
posed  social  philosophies,  a  plan  which  ignores  the 
dynamic  of  changed  individual  lives  is  doomed  to 
failure.  Just  as  truly  this  dynamic  cannot  be 
limited  to  the  small  circle  of  personal  interests;  it 
must  be  brought  to  bear  upon  the  tasks  of  com¬ 
mon  welfare. 


34  THE  SOCIAL  MESSAGE  OF  JESUS 


Jesus’  approach  to  the  social  question. — Of  these 
two  methods  of  approach  the  former  is  the  one 
which  Jesus  employs.  “Jesus  did  not  work  for  the 
Jewish  nation  or  the  Roman  Empire  or  society  as 
a  whole.  He  worked  first  of  all  for  souls — sinful 
men  and  women.  The  first  great  message  of  the 
social  gospel  is  just  this:  men  and  women  can 
be  saved  from  sin  each  by  himself  or  herself.  No¬ 
body  has  to  wait  for  good  legislation  or  good  sewer¬ 
age  or  good  customs  or  good  food  or  good  times 
or  a  good  world.  Only  think  where  the  prodigal 
son  began,  where  the  woman  who  anointed  Jesus 
at  the  house  of  Simon  began.  If  either  had  waited 
till  society  had  been  regenerated,  they  might  be 
waiting  to-day.  .  .  . 

“There  has  been  no  little  discussion  as  to  whether 
the  individual  or  society  is  the  great  end  of  all 
social  development.  From  the  Christian  point  of 
view  there  need  be  no  hesitancy  in  the  answer  so 
far  as  man  is  concerned:  the  saved  individual  is 
the  supreme  end  of  the  divine  will.  Only  it  is  the 
saved  individual;  that  is,  one  whose  life  is  like  God’s 
as  it  appears  in  Jesus.  And  that,  of  course,  means 
not  a  selfish,  narrow,  egotistic  individualism,  but 
one  that  is  social,  full  of  love  and  helpfulness — a 
life  that  finds  its  proper  expression  only  in  the 
community  of  other  lives  like  itself.  In  other  words, 
there  can  be  no  real  regenerate  life  that  is  anti¬ 
social.  To  use  the  dialect  of  the  schools,  the  saved 
life  must  function  socially  or  be  lost.”1 

A  high  estimate  of  personality. — Jesus  had  a 
high  appreciation  of  the  worth  of  a  man.  He  was 
always  ready  to  stop  and  talk  to  individuals.  Each 


1  Mathews,  The  Social  Gospel,  pp.  12-13  and  14-15. 


THE  WORTH  OF  A  MAN 


35 


such  conversation  he  regarded  as  an  opportunity, 
a  chance  to  state  again  the  simple  but  comprehensive 
ideas  of  the  Kingdom.  Many  such  conversations 
are  recorded  in  the  Gospels,  while  the  sermons 
are  but  few.  Some  of  his  choicest  truths  were  given 
in  conversation  with  single  individuals.  The  “little 
gospel”  which  has  been  the  text  of  multitudes  of 
sermons  came  at  the  conclusion  of  that  memorable 
talk  with  Nicodemus.  The  clear  statement  about 
true  worship  being  of  the  heart  was  addressed  to 
the  woman  by  the  well  in  Samaria,  while  it  was 
to  Martha  that  Jesus  spoke  those  words  which  have 
brought  comfort  to  so  many  sorrowing  hearts, 
“I  am  the  resurrection  and  the  life.”  It  is  not  the 
present  worth  of  the  individual,  however,  that  is 
Jesus’  main  concern.  It  is  the  future  possibilities 
that  he  has  also,  perhaps  chiefly,  in  mind.  Folk 
are  precious  to  him  because  they  may  become 
children  of  God  and  joint  heirs  with  Christ.  He 
is  aware  of  their  potential  worth  as  members  of 
the  Kingdom  and  concerned  that  full  development 
shall  take  place. 

This  same  idea  of  the  worth  of  the  individual 
is  prominent  in  the  teaching  of  the  parables.  The 
gaining  of  one  individual  for  the  Kingdom  was  the 
cause  of  rejoicing  in  heaven.  One  lost  sheep  was 
sufficient  reason  for  an  all-night  search  by  the 
shepherd.2  The  woman  who  lost  one  of  her  coins 
sweeps  and  searches  until  she  finds  it,  and  again 
there  is  great  joy.  The  whole  parable  of  the  prod¬ 
igal  son,  speaking  eloquently  of  the  father’s  love 
and  so  figuring  the  love  of  God  for  men,  is  cen¬ 
tered  on  the  one  son.  These  parables  also  give 


2  Luke  15: 1-10. 


36  THE  SOCIAL  MESSAGE  OF  JESUS 


us  the  reason  for  this  high  valuation  which  the 
Master  places  upon  the  worth  of  a  man.  To  Jesus 
men  and  women  are  of  supreme  value,  not  because 
of  what  they  are,  but  because  of  what  they  may 
become.  It  is  this  chance  to  become  children  of  God 
which  makes  the  Christian  estimate  of  men  so  high. 

Consider  also  that  his  teachings  are  individual¬ 
istic;  they  are  about  duties  for  a  man,  not  for  men. 
It  is  possible  for  one  to  be  a  follower  of  Christ  all 
by  oneself,  even  among  those  who  are  hostile  and 
out  of  sympathy.  Men  can  be  saved  all  by  them¬ 
selves.  The  drunkard  may  reform  and  need  not 
wait  for  the  saloon  to  be  abolished.  This  is  seen 
also  in  his  teaching  that  worship  is  an  individual 
matter.  The  Hebrew  thought  of  worship  as  de¬ 
pendent  on  place  and  priest  and  ritual,  but  Jesus 
pointed  out  that  not  place  but  the  spirit  of  worship 
was  the  essential  thing.3 

This  lesson  has  not  been  thoroughly  learned  even 
after  nineteen  centuries.  Out  of  four  hundred  and 
forty-seven  millions  of  nominal  Christians  in  the 
world,  three  hundred  and  twenty-eight  millions,  or 
nearly  seventy  per  cent,  adhere  to  a  form  of  wor¬ 
ship  depending  on  a  ritual  conducted  in  a  language 
which  they  do  not  understand.  Furthermore, 
many  a  Protestant  service  is  at  its  best  a  time  to 
hear  a  sermon  and  receive  instruction  or  inspiration, 
and  at  its  lowest  a  performance  by  minister  and 
choir  to  be  enjoyed  (weak  word  of  small  minds) 
and  criticized.  Without  forgetting  in  the  least 
the  helpfulness  of  a  beautiful  service  or  an  eloquent 
sermon,  still  what  a  need  there  is  for  Christians 
to  “worship  in  spirit  and  in  truth”! 


3  John  4: 19-24. 


THE  WORTH  OF  A  MAN 


37 


So  it  is  with  other  matters.  Jesus  has  the  highest 
regard  for  personality.  In  that  dramatic  scene 
where  the  woman  taken  in  adultery  is  brought 
before  him  he  senses  what  her  accusers  have  missed 
— that  her  personality  has  been  debased  and  de¬ 
graded,  but  that  there  still  remains  a  spark  of 
humanity.  It  was  his  high  regard  for  human  worth, 
even  when  brought  low  through  sin,  that  enabled 
him  to  handle  a  difficult  situation  with  consummate 
tact.  As  Dr.  Rauschenbush  says:  “This  regard 
for  human  life  was  based  on  the  same  social  instinct 
which  every  normal  man  possesses.  But  with  Jesus 
it  was  so  strong  that  it  determined  all  his  view¬ 
points  and  activities.  He  affirmed  the  humane 
instinct  consciously  and  intelligently  and  raised  it 
to  the  dignity  of  a  social  principle.” 

The  most  convincing  proof,  however,  of  the  esti¬ 
mate  which  Jesus  placed  on  the  worth  of  a  man 
is  that  he  committed  the  interests  of  his  kingdom 
to  the  care  of  a  few  individuals.  When  a  great 
movement  is  launched  in  these  days,  what  com¬ 
plicated  machinery  is  deemed  needful!  There  must 
be  a  constitution  and  by-laws  and  officers  and 
committees  and  resolutions.  A  propaganda  must 
be  worked  out  and  a  policy  determined  on.  Mass 
meetings  must  be  called,  intensive  campaigns 
launched,  speeches  made,  and  books  written.  An 
official  organ  must  be  started  and  an  endowment 
raised.  Then,  when  results  are  counted  up,  the 
whole  “movement”  sometimes  is  ludicrously  like 
using  a  steam  sawmill,  with  its  flying  belts  and 
ponderous  machines,  to  sharpen  a  lead  pencil.  Men 
plan  and  contrive  and  strain  and  fail.  Jesus  speaks 
a  few  simple  truths,  plants  a  dynamic  force  in  the 


38  THE  SOCIAL  MESSAGE  OF  JESUS 


hearts  of  a  few  followers,  and  his  work  endures 
for  centuries,  transforming  the  generations.  It 
was  indeed  the  placing  of  a  very  little  leaven  in  a 
very  great  lump,  but  the  results  justify  the  wis¬ 
dom  of  the  means. 

In  the  beginning  God  created  man  in  his  own 
image.  It  is  the  profound  realization  of  this  truth 
that  determines  the  estimate  which  the  Master 
places  on  the  worth  of  a  man.  None  are  so  humble 
or  unworthy  as  to  be  beneath  his  attention.  The 
image  of  his  Father  may  be  sadly  defaced,  but  it 
may  be  restored.  The  possibilities  of  development 
are  so  infinitely  great  that  Jesus  says  to  his  dis¬ 
ciples,  “Be  ye  also  perfect,  even  as  your  Father 
which  is  in  heaven  is  perfect.”  When  Jesus’  recog¬ 
nition  of  the  dignity  and  worth  of  men  and  women 
becomes  the  universal  standard,  then  social  recon¬ 
struction  will  soon  be  an  accomplished  fact. 

The  hall  mark  of  Christianity. — This  realization 
of  “the  worth  of  a  man”  has  been  one  of  the  hall 
marks  of  Christianity.  Other  great  faiths  of  man¬ 
kind  have  contributed  to  religious  truth,  but  they 
have  uniformly  fallen  short  at  this  point.  When 
Christianity  penetrates  heathendom  and  supplants 
its  civilization,  charitable  aid,  hospitals,  orphanages, 
and  similar  institutions  quickly  follow.  Human 
life  is  safer  and  living  more  worth  while  under  the 
shadow  of  the  cross.  Womanhood  is  put  upon  a 
new  level.  An  Arab  proverb  says,  “The  threshold 
weeps  forty  days  when  a  girl  is  born.”  A  common 
Chinese  saying  declares,  “If  a  girl  does  no  harm, 
it  is  enough;  you  cannot  expect  her  to  be  either 
useful  or  good.”  Contrast  these  statements  and  the 
attitude  toward  woman  which  they  typify  with  the 


THE  WORTH  OF  A  MAN 


39 


place  of  woman  in  Christian  lands.  In  the  same 
way  childhood  is  honored  and  the  potentialities  of 
individuality  recognized  again. 

But  if  “the  worth  of  a  man”  supplies  a  test  when 
two  civilizations  are  put  in  contrast,  it  is  also  avail¬ 
able  in  determining  the  genuineness  of  the  Chris¬ 
tianity  of  so-called  Christian  institutions.  If  we 
find  that  “Business  as  now  constituted,  has  a  con¬ 
stitutional  and  inevitable  interest  in  raising  the 
value  of  Things  and  keeping  down  the  value  of 
Men/5  or  that  “Whenever  Life  is  set  above  Profit 
in  business  there  is  a  thrill  of  admiration  which 
indicates  that  something  unusual  has  been  done/5 
we  are  certainly  entitled  to  at  least  suspect  a  dif¬ 
ference  between  the  ideals  of  business  and  the 
ideals  of  Christ.  It  is  safe  to  say  that  whatever 
degrades  man  is  displeasing  to  God.  The  stout 
warnings  of  Amos  were  directed  toward  those 
“which  oppress  the  poor,  which  crush  the  needy” 
and  “that  lie  upon  beds  of  ivory,  and  stretch  them¬ 
selves  upon  their  couches,  .  .  .  but  they  are  not 
grieved  for  the  affliction  of  Joseph.5 5  That  word  is 
not  out  of  date.  Oppression,  though  form  and 
occasion  may  change,  is  as  eternally  wrong  in 
America  to-day  as  in  Israel  long  centuries  ago. 

“The  principle  of  reverence  for  personality  is 
the  ruling  principle  in  ethics  and  in  religion;  it 
constitutes,  therefore,  the  truest  and  highest  test 
of  either  an  individual  or  a  civilization;  it  has  been, 
even  unconsciously,  the  guiding  and  determining 
principle  in  all  human  progress;  and  in  its  religious 
interpretation  it  is,  indeed,  the  one  faith  that 
keeps  meaning  and  value  for  life”  (President  Henry 
C.  King). 


40 


THE  SOCIAL  MESSAGE  OF  JESUS 


Exercises 

1.  By  what  standards  do  we  usually  value  men? 

2.  Give  an  illustration  of  the  fact  that  the  advance¬ 

ment  of  a  civilization  may  be  judged  by  the 
estimate  placed  on  individuals. 

3.  Is  there  a  relation  between  community  morals 

and  child-labor  statistics? 

4.  Is  it  true  that  “Prostitution  is  the  worst  form 

of  contempt  for  personality”? 

5.  Give  some  evidences  that  modern  society  values 

men  apart  from  their  economic  utility. 

6.  Give  examples  of  modern  legislation  based  on 

a  keen  appreciation  of  “the  worth  of  a 
man.” 

7.  Show  that  race  prejudice  discounts  the  worth  of 

the  individual. 

8.  When  does  “personal  liberty”  become  “license”? 

9.  May  the  community  restrict  “personal  liberty” 

through  legislation  without  violating  per¬ 
sonality? 

10.  Give  reasons  for  believing  that  Jesus  values 

individuals  highly. 

11.  Why  do  you  think  it  was  that  Jesus  depended 

on  individual  action  rather  than  on  organ¬ 
ization  for  the  promotion  of  his  cause? 

12.  Was  the  valuation  placed  by  Jesus  on  the 

individual  ahead  of  that  common  at  that 
time? 

13.  Which  should  come  first,  individual  reform  or 

legislation?  Apply  this  to  prohibition  of  the 
use  of  intoxicants. 

14.  Is  it  true  that  a  man  cannot  be  saved  all  by 

himself? 


THE  WORTH  OF  A  MAN 


4i 


Topics  for  Further  Study 

1.  The  church  is  made  for  man,  not  man  for  the 

church. 

2.  The  conversations  of  Jesus. 

3.  The  social  value  of  worship. 

4.  The  primacy  of  the  individual  in  social  work. 

5.  Restoring  the  image  of  God. 

Suggested  Readings 

Mathews,  The  Social  Gospel ,  Chapter  I. 

Batten,  The  Social  Task  of  Christianity ,  pp.  74-83. 
Jenks,  Social  Significance  of  the  Teachings  of  Jesus , 
Study  IV. 

Rauschenbusch,  The  Social  Principles  of  Jesus , 
Chapter  I. 


CHAPTER  IV 


BROTHERHOOD 

\ 

Fellowship  is  vital.  Man  is  a  social  being  and 
can  by  no  means  reach  his  best  development  alone. 
It  seems  almost  paradoxical,  but  it  is  nevertheless 
true  that  the  individual  makes  his  normal  and 
finest  growth  when  in  close  contact  with  others. 
Joy,  pleasure,  service,  goodness  itself  are  social  in 
their  nature.  The  most  fearful  punishment  is 
solitary  confinement,  and  the  hermit  is  promptly 
recognized  as  abnormal  and  almost  unhuman.  This 
fellowship  has  many  manifestations.  Cooperative 
labor,  the  team  work  of  the  athletic  contest,  the 
worshiping  congregation,  the  family  circle,  the  labor 
union,  all  give  their  testimony  to  the  fundamental 
sociality  of  human  kind.  Even  “the  slender  thread 
of  good  in  the  saloon  is  comradeship. ” 

Solidarity  supreme. — Jesus  not  only  had  a  high 
opinion  of  the  worth  of  the  individual,  but  he  also 
stressed  the  relations  between  individuals.  He 
believed  in  the  solidarity  of  the  human  family. 
As  has  already  been  indicated,  the  salvation  of  the 
individual  is  truly  the  object  of  the  Master’s  interest. 
But  that  very  salvation  has  social  results.  In  fact, 
it  is  true  in  a  certain  sense  that  one  cannot  “be 
saved”  by  himself.  The  changed  heart  of  the 
individual  must  give  evidence  of  that  change  through 
its  social  actions.  James  gave  a  correct  statement 
of  the  relation  of  these  two  parts  of  Christian  expe- 


BROTHERHOOD 


,43 


rience  when  he  wrote,  “What  good  is  it,  my  brethren, 
if  a  man  profess  to  have  faith,  and  yet  his  actions 
do  not  correspond?  Can  such  faith  save  him? 
Suppose  a  Christian  brother  or  sister  is  poorly  clad 
or  lacks  daily  food,  and  one  of  you  says  to  them, 
‘I  wish  you  well,  keep  yourselves  warm  and  well 
fed/  arid  yet  you  do  not  give  them  what  they  need; 
what  i^jthe  use  of  that?  So  also  faith,  if  it  is  unac¬ 
companied  by  obedience,  has  no  life  in  it — so  long 
as  it  stands  alone.”  He  then  refers  to  Abraham 
and  his  willingness  to  obey,  even  to  the  point  of 
sacrificing  his  son  Isaac,  and  adds,  “You  see  that 
it  is  because  of  actions  that  a  man  is  pronounced 
righteous,  and  not  simply  because  of  faith.”1 

It  is  here  that  the  social  implications  of  the  gos¬ 
pel  message  appear.  Jesus  begins  with  the  indi¬ 
vidual,  but  moves  at  once  to  his  social  relationships. 
The  truth  of  this  is  apparent  from  at  least  four 
considerations.  Think  first  of  the  answer  that 
Jesus  gave  when  asked  the  question,  “Which  is  the 
greatest  commandment?”  It  was,  of  course,  in 
the  minds  of  his  questioners  a  mere  quibble  about 
the  multitudinous  requirements  of  the  Jewish 
ritual.  Jesus,  in  his  reply,  points  out  one  central, con¬ 
trolling  law — the  law  of  love;  and  two  objects  for 
its  exercise — God  and  brother  man.2  This  is  funda¬ 
mental.  As  Dr.  Rauschenbusch  points  out,  “Who¬ 
ever  demands  love  demands  solidarity.  Whoever 
sets  love  first  sets  fellowship  high.”3  It  is  on  such 
a  foundation,  of  mutual  love  that  the  unity  of  the 
home  rests.  |  Common  interests  and  common  fears, 

'James  2:  14-16,  24,  Weymouth  Version  New  Testament. 

2  Matthew  22:  35-40. 

3  The  Social  Principles  of  Jesus ,  p.  17.  Association  Press. 


44  THE  SOCIAL  MESSAGE  OF  JESUS 


cooperation  in  labor  and  the  sharing  of  danger 
are  cohesive  forces  tending  to  unify  the  groups 
on  which  they  operate,  but  none  of  them  can  com¬ 
pare  with  love.  And  since  it  is  in  the  home  above 
all  other  social  institutions  that  love  reigns,  it  is 
there  that  the  greatest  social  unity  is  found.  L*ater 
on  we  shall  need  to  define  this  form  of  love  and 
examine  its  operation.  Just  now  let  us  be  content 
to  regard  it  as  the  force  which  binds  the  human 
race  into  one  brotherhood. 

A  second  evidence  of  Jesus’  regard  for  human 
solidarity  is  found  in  the  lengths  to  which  he  would 
go  to  avoid  its  violation.  Peter  came  to  him  with 
the  question,  “How  oft  shall  my  brother  sin  against 
me  and  I  forgive  him?  Until  seven  times?”  Per¬ 
haps  Peter  felt  a  glow  of  self-commendation  in 
setting  the  limit  so  high.  The  rabbinic  rule  of  three 
times  would  have  put  quite  a  strain  on  his  impetuous 
nature,  but  he  was  willing  to  go  even  to  the  “per¬ 
fect”  number  of  seven.  His  legalistic  training  was 
shown  in  the  desire  to  have  a  definite  rule.  How 
amazed  he  must  have  been  at  the  Master’s  “seventy 
times  seven,”  setting  forth  the  principle  of  a  prac¬ 
tically  unlimited  exercise  of  the  forgiving  spirit. 
This  has  been  called  “Christ’s  most  striking  inno¬ 
vation  in  morality.”  In  the  succeeding  parable  of 
the  unforgiving  servant,4  this  idea  is  developed  and 
stated  as  one  of  the  characteristics  of  the  kingdom 
of  heaven.  In  this  connection  consider  also  the 
teaching  about  revenge,  in  Matthew  5:  38-42;  about 
murder,  in  Matthew  5:  21-22;  about  reconciliation, 
in  Matthew  5:23-26;  and  the  final  separation  of 
the  sheep  and  the  goats  in  Matthew  25:31-46. 


4  Matthew  18:  23-35. 


BROTHERHOOD 


45 


Note  that  in  all  these  cases  fellowship  has  been 
destroyed  and  that  the  spirit  of  Christianity  de¬ 
mands  an  attempt  to  restore  fellowship.  Indeed, 
so  important  did  this  seem  to  Jesus  that  he  puts 
the  maintenance  of  fellowship  above  “personal 
rights.”  To  “turn  the  other  cheek”  has  become  a 
misinterpreted  byword  of  spiritless  submission. 
The  whole  passage  in  which  it  occurs  is  really  an 
exaltation  of  fellowship.  It  is  well  to  keep  in  mind 
that  this  has  to  do  with  the  resenting  of  personal 
injuries,  and  that  no  warrant  is  given  for  a  theory 
of  nonresistance  to  the  evil  influences  which  are 
threatening  to  disrupt  fellowship.  Personality  is 
sacred  and  must  not  be  transgressed,  but  it  may 
forfeit  that  right  by  its  own  unsocial  actions.  Jesus 
himself  did  not  hesitate  to  condemn  when  occasion 
demanded,  and  to  resist  those  whose  opposition 
threatened  the  success  of  his  work.  Read  again 
his  indignant,  scornful  words  against  the  Pharisees 
(Matthew  23:  23-28),  and  the  parable  of  Dives 
(Luke  16:  19-23),  and  the  account  of  his  resistance 
to  personal  temptation  (Matthew  4 :  8-1 1 ;  Mark 

8:31-33)- 

Again  Jesus  gave  evidence  of  his  firm  faith  in  the 
solidarity  of  the  race  by  identifying  himself  with  it. 
The  term  which  he  frequently  applied  to  himself 
was  “Son  of  man.”  It  is  not  strange  that  the 
beloved  John  should  be  the  one  to  record  that 
expression  of  affection  where  the  Master  says,  “I 
have  called  you  friends”  (John  15:  15).  That 
friendly  spirit  of  his  was  exercised  in  so  catholic  a 
fashion  that  his  critics  were  moved  to  sneeringly 
say  that  he  ate  and  fraternized  with  sinners.  But 
this  attitude  of  friendliness,  this  identification  of 


46  THE  SOCIAL  MESSAGE  OF  JESUS 


himself  with  the  great  human  family,  was  not 
shown  alone  in  proffers  of  helpfulness.  Jesus  not 
only  contributed  but  he  demanded  friendship, 
which  is  always  a  reciprocal  relation.  Consider  in 
this  connection  the  scene  in  the  garden  of  Geth- 
semane.  / 

Finally,  it  is  God’s  purpose  that  men  should  be 
bound  together  in  unity.  This  can  be  indicated  by 
many  words  from  the  gospel,  but  the  spirit  of  them 
all  is  gathered  into  one  expression  in  the  First 
Epistle  of  John  (4:  7-8),  “Beloved,  let  us  love  one 
another;  for  love  is  of  God;  and  everyone  that 
loveth  is  born  of  God,  and  knoweth  God.  He  that 
loveth  not  knoweth  not  God;  for  God  is  love.” 

The  implications  of  solidarity. — There  are  some 
important  implications  growing  out  of  this  fact 
of  the  solidarity  of  the  race.  One  of  these  is  the 
social  conscience  and  responsibility  of  the  group. 
A  town  or  neighborhood,  or  a  college  class  or  a 
church  or  nation,  is  more  than  a  collection  of  per¬ 
sons.  Such  a  social  group  is  an  organism,  not 
simply  an  organization.  Jesus  recognizes  this 
responsibility  in  the  case  of  Chorazin,  Bethsaida, 
and  Capernaum  (Matthew  11:20-24).  “We  know 
that  by  constant  common  action  a  social  group 
develops  a  common  spirit  and  common  standards 
of  action,  which  then  assimilate  and  standardize  the 
actions  of  its  members.  Jesus  felt  the  solidarity  of 
the  neighborhood  groups  in  Galilee  with  whom  he 
mingled.  He  treated  them  as  composite  person¬ 
alities,  jointly  responsible  for  their  moral  decisions.”5 

Group  consciousness  and  group  conscience  do  not 
always  develop  together.  It  is  rather  easy  to  incite 


6  Rauschenbusch,  The  Social  Principles  of  Jesus ,  p.  21. 


BROTHERHOOD 


47 


a  crowd  of  college  freshmen  to  such  a  conscious¬ 
ness  of  college  traditions  and  class  action  that  they 
will  sweep  the  bleachers,  wear  green  caps,  and 
collect  material  for  the  annual  bonfire.  To  get  them 
to  accept  responsibility  for  the  looting  of  a  neigh¬ 
boring  lumber  yard  in  the  interest  of  that  bonfire 
is  not  so  simple.  Civic  pride  in  population,  new 
manufactories,  and  public  buildings  is  usually 
strong.  To  get  the  same  people  to  face  the  revela¬ 
tion  of  a  thorough  social  survey  is  another  story. 
Denominational  pride  does  not  always  mean  denom¬ 
inational  progress.  Nevertheless,  the  responsibility 
of  the  social  group  is  an  unavoidable  fact.  The 
more  completely  this  responsibility  is  accepted  the 
more  nearly  does  any  community  deserve  the  term 
“Christian.” 

We  must  realize  this  fact  of  solidarity,  for  it  is 
fundamental.  We  may  not  like  people,  but  we 
cannot  be  indifferent  to  them.  As  Carlyle  says, 
“In  vain  thou  deniest  it,  thou  art  my  brother.” 
It  is  important  to  understand  just  what  is  meant 
by  social  unity.  Modern  life  is  complex  and  our 
needs  and  interests  are  inextricably  interwoven. 
You  get  up  in  the  morning  and  turn  on  the  faucet, 
confident  that  the  water  with  which  to  wash  your 
face  will  promptly  flow.  The  gas  you  cook  by, 
the  light  overhead,  and  the  milk  on  the  back  steps 
are  all  part  of  the  practically  unfailing  routine  of 
your  life.  Let  one  of  them  fail  and  you  feel,  and 
rightly  enough,  a  sense  of  ill  treatment.  When 
there  is  no  failure  it  is  because  the  engineers  in  the 
pumping  station,  the  firemen  in  the  gas  works,  the 
electricians  in  the  power  house,  and  the  milkman 
on  his  early  morning  rounds  have  done  their  part 


48  THE  SOCIAL  MESSAGE  OF  JESUS 


in  the  world’s  work.  Your  comfort  and  well-being 
depend  on  their  social  faithfulness.  In  return  you 
have  your  duties  and  play  your  part.  These  and 
scores  of  other  such  relations  involving  our  physical 
well-being  are  easily  understood. 

Neither  must  it  be  forgotten  that  in  many  less 
obvious  ways  we  are  interrelated.  The  store  of 
knowledge  which  we  each  possess  is  made  up  of 
many  contributions  from  others.  If  it  were  possi¬ 
ble  to  live  an  absolutely  isolated  life,  it  would  be 
devoid  of  interest.  Robinson  Crusoe  was  cut  off 
from  physical  communication  with  his  fellows  for 
a  season,  but  his  mental  connections  were  still 
maintained.  You  cannot  imagine  such  a  story 
written  about  a  castaway  with  no  previous  expe¬ 
rience  to  draw  upon.  It  is  interesting,  if  somewhat 
humbling,  to  see  how  largely  our  stock  of  ideas  is 
borrowed.  We  lay  tribute  on  teachers,  friends, 
preachers,  books,  papers,  and  draw  but  little  from 
original  sources.  What  do  we  know  of  history  or 
science  or  any  other  chosen  field,  except  what  we 
have  read  or  been  told?  The  best  claim  that  most  of 
us  can  make  to  originality  is  in  rearranging  the 
ideas  and  drawing  a  few  conclusions.  The  more 
we  consider,  the  more  we  see  our  interdependence  in 
the  mental  world. 

Again,  in  the  moral  realm  we  are  tied  to  others 
with  a  web  of  invisible  but  restraining  bonds.  The 
balance  is  so  delicate  that  the  defection  of  one  in 
even  some  seemingly  entirely  personal  matter  dis¬ 
turbs  the  whole  economy.  A  sulky  child  in  the 
family  casts  a  cloud  on  the  whole  group.  It  is  true 
that  if  “one  member  suffers,  all  the  members  suffer.” 
But,  happily,  the  reverse  is  also  true,  and  right- 


BROTHERHOOD 


49 


eousness  and  the  uplifting  emotions  are  also  con¬ 
tagious.  In  no  way  is  the  essential  solidarity  of 
mankind  so  convincingly  evidenced  as  when  the 
helpful  life  of  some  individual  brings  hope  and 
cheer  to  a  great  circle  of  those  even  outside  his 
immediate  acquaintance.  The  whole  world  is  lifted 
by  the  fervor  of  a  Wesley,  or  the  missionary  zeal 
of  a  Carey.  Sunshine  was  shed  by  Florence  Night¬ 
ingale  on  more  hospital  cots  than  she  ever  visited. 
In  fighting  the  “Battle  with  the  Slum”  Jacob  Riis 
won  victories  in  other  dark  places  than  those  of 
New  York. 

When  considering  the  various  problems  of  social 
life  it  is  scarcely  possible  to  overestimate  the  sig¬ 
nificance  of  human  solidarity.  Progress  is  made 
when  cooperation  replaces  individual  effort  or 
competition.  If  employer  and  employee  approach 
their  mutual  perplexities  in  the  spirit  of  brother¬ 
hood,  how  much  more  possible  does  a  just  and 
satisfactory  settlement  become!  Their  interests — 
physical,  social,  and  spiritual — are  so  intertwined 
that  the  only  permanent  basis  of  agreement  must 
involve  justice  to  each,  and  such  agreement  is 
possible  only  when  that  mutual  dependence  is  under¬ 
stood.  Perhaps  there  is  no  place  where  brother¬ 
hood  is  more  commonly  disregarded  than  in  the 
relation  between  the  races.  Race  hatred  and 
solidarity  are  mutually  exclusive.  The  vision  of 
the  great  sheet  filled  with  diverse  kinds  of  animals 
which  came  to  Peter  on  the  housetop  has  not  lost 
its  timeliness.  It  has  often  been  cited  as  a  warrant 
for  foreign  missions,  but  it  also  strikes  much  nearer 
home.  It  needs  to  be  better  understood  that  sel¬ 
fishness  is  not  always  a  personal  sin.  Just  as  personal 


50  THE  SOCIAL  MESSAGE  OF  JESUS 


selfishness  operates  against  the  welfare  of  the  group 
and  ultimately  against  the  person  himself,  so  group 
selfishness  is  fatal  in  society  and  finally  wrecks  the 
group  itself  where  it  originated.  A  community  or  a 
nation  can  no  more  live  to  itself  than  can  an  indi¬ 
vidual.  The  operation  of  this  law  may  be  slow, 
but  it  is  sure.  It  is  well  for  each  of  us  to  think 
carefully  at  this  point  and  not  to  be  content  with 
generalization.  Let  each  remove  the  beam  from  his 
own  eye  before  attempting  to  remove  the  mote 
from  the  eye  of  another.  It  is  easier  to  say  what 
labor  and  capital  should  do  than  to  shape  our  own 
conduct.  Scarcely  one  of  us  is  free  from  the  prej¬ 
udice  of  habit  in  this  matter. 

The  Christ  Spirit  must  prevail. — The  great  chal¬ 
lenge  to  Christian  men  and  women  to-day  is  to  so 
think  and  live  in  every  human  relationship  that  the 
Christ  spirit  shall  prevail.  The  tragedies  of  human 
existence  appear  where  the  Christ  spirit  is  lacking. 
The  materialistic  philosophy  of  life,  which  so  largely 
controls  our  thinking  to-day,  has  nearly  succeeded 
in  convincing  the  world  that  a  man’s  life  does  con¬ 
sist  in  the  abundance  of  things  which  he  possesseth. 
But  where  this  thought  holds  sway  divisive  tenden¬ 
cies  are  always  evidenced.  The  Christ  spirit  is 
unifying.  The  church  sings,  “We  are  not  divided, 
all  one  body  we,”  in  complacent  disregard  of  the 
facts.  The  Master’s  prayer  with  its  petition,  “Thy 
kingdom  come,  thy  will  be  done,”  will  sound  out 
with  new  meaning  in  our  churches  when  the  spirit 
of  Christ  prevails  over  the  narrow,  sectarian  spirit. 
Peace  will  come  to  the  industrial  world,  justice  and 
brotherliness  will  be  working  principles,  and  the 
dynamic  of  loving  hearts  will  have  a  chance  to 


BROTHERHOOD 


5i 


operate  when  the  spirit  of  Christ  triumphs  over 
the  spirit  of  partisan  and  selfish  class-consciousness. 
That  ancient  word  that  God  “hath  made  of  one 
blood  all  nations  of  men  to  dwell  on  all  the  face 
of  the  earth”  will  be  realized  when  the  spirit  of 
Christ  so  controls  that  the  ugly  spirit  of  race  hatred 
will  be  driven  from  the  hearts  of  men. 

Exercises 

1.  “Are  comradeship  and  team  work  instinctive  or 

must  they  be  learned?”  (Rauschenbusch.) 

2.  How  long  must  a  group  be  associated  to  gain 

class-consciousness? 

3.  Does  the  team  spirit  ever  go  wrong? 

4.  Give  examples  of  where  the  principle  of  solidarity 

is  acted  upon  in  modern  life.  Also  examples 
of  its  rejection. 

5.  Is  a  college  fraternity  fraternal? 

6.  Do  church  organizations  help  or  hinder  the 

realization  of  social  solidarity? 

7.  Have  you  ever  made  an  entirely  original  dis¬ 

covery? 

8.  Are  your  political  convictions  original  or  bor¬ 

rowed?  Your  religious  beliefs? 

9.  Did  Jesus  need  friends?  Does  he  now? 

10.  How  much  of  the  model  prayer  is  social  and 

how  much  personal? 

11.  Give  passages  from  the  Gospels  showing  that 

Jesus  regarded  unity  of  spirit  between  persons 
as  essential. 

12.  Did  Jesus’  ideas  of  solidarity  extend  beyond  the 

Jewish  race? 

13.  Name  several  social  groups  that  exhibit  the 

Christian  spirit  of  solidarity. 


52  THE  SOCIAL  MESSAGE  OF  JESUS 


14.  Is  love  as  a  basis  for  race  solidarity  found  in 

other  than  Christian  sources? 

15.  Is  the  need  for  others  an  indication  of  strength 

or  of  weakness? 

16.  Consider  some  personal  experiences  of  forgiving 

and  of  being  forgiven;  which  had  the  more 
solidifying  effect  on  your  social  relationship? 

17.  Do  hatred  and  the  unforgiving  spirit  disprove 

solidarity? 

Topics  for  Further  Discussion 

1.  The  connection  of  love  and  solidarity. 

2.  Fraternity  amd  modern  business. 

3.  Religion  and  social  unity. 

4.  The  Lord’s  Prayer  and  the  spirit  of  solidarity. 

5.  The  friendship  of  Jesus. 

6.  The  strike  in  relation  to  human  solidarity. 

Suggested  Readings 

Rauschenbusch,  The  Social  Principles  of  Jesus , 
Chapter  II. 

Fosdick,  The  Manhood  of  the  Master ,  Study  IX. 


CHAPTER  V 


THE  MASTER’S  KINGDOM  IDEALS 

To  appreciate  the  Master’s  ideals  for  his  kingdom 
we  must  understand  his  viewpoint.  As  has  been 
pointed  out  previously,  while  his  acquaintance  with 
life  was  intimate  and  detailed,  he  had  for  himself 
the  comprehensive  view.  It  is  sometimes  said  that 
one  fails  to  see  the  forest  for  the  trees.  The  Master 
makes  no  such  mistake. 

The  Master’s  attitude  may  be  likened  to  that 
of  the  head  of  a  great  business  concern  who  under¬ 
stands  the  need  and  use  of  trucks,  and  paper  wrap¬ 
pings,  and  bills  and  bookkeeping.  Such  a  man 
appreciates  the  value  of  details,  and  may  be  familiar 
with  many  of  them  from  his  own  experience,  but 
he  is  not  bound  by  them.  He  outlines  policies  and 
expects  others  to  carry  them  out.  He  considers 
world-wide  trade  movements,  not  profits  on  a  single 
transaction,  but  still  is  not  unmindful  that  success 
is  built  out  of  single  successful  transactions.  Such 
an  attitude  lifts  one  away  from  the  distortions  of 
the  too  close  view.  Whatever  the  field,  it  seems 
almost  impossible  to  combine  familiarity  concern¬ 
ing  the  intimate  details  with  a  broad  comprehension 
of  the  whole  plan.  Such  a  “close-up”  usually  leads 
us  to  color  the  whole  with  the  aspects  of  the  local 
situation.  For  the  leader  the  well-balanced,  com¬ 
prehensive  grasp  is  vital. 


S3 


54  THE  SOCIAL  MESSAGE  OF  JESUS 


This  view  of  life  is  the  view  of  clear  vision  and 
true  perspective.  The  leader  in  social  work  must 
have  it;  he  must  see  things  in  the  large,  and  some¬ 
times  this  will  lead  him  to  change  his  methods. 
Organized  charity  considers  the  need  of  a  whole 
community,  and  so  in  a  single  case  may  need  to 
pursue  a  different  course  than  that  which  private 
sympathy  would  indicate.  Dr.  Stewart  was  mayor 
of  a  certain  Michigan  city  when  an  epidemic  of 
smallpox  broke  out.  He  was  at  once  concerned 
with  plans  for  quarantining  and  sanitation,  and  may 
possibly  have  given  less  attention  to  his  private 
practice  than  he  otherwise  would  have  done.  His 
duty  as  a  public  officer  exceeded  his  responsibilities 
as  a  physician.  Why  did  Christ  denounce  in  such 
bitter  terms  the  scribes  and  Pharisees?  It  was 
because  they  overlooked  great  things  while  gazing 
at  little  ones.  They  tithed  mint  and  anise  and 
cumin  and  neglected  judgment,,  mercy,  and  faith. 
They  had  lost  all  sense  of  proportion  and  so  were 
utterly  unable  to  see  clearly.  It  is  precisely  this 
remoteness  and  elevation  of  mind  that  enabled  Jesus 
to  speak  so  clearly  and  surely  about  social  issues. 
“He  only  truly  sees  things  who  sees  round  them 
and  beyond  them.  .  .  .  Sometimes  it  happens  that 
the  highest  wisdom  in  affairs  of  the  practical  world 
is  an  endowment  of  the  most  unworldly  men.  They 
see  into  life  by  seeing  over  it.” 

The  comprehensive  view  is  the  view  of  hope.  The 
close  view  is  often  discouraging.  We  see  social 
unrest,  unloving  and  unlovely  men,  greed,  selfish¬ 
ness,  political  corruption,  little  children  sacrificed  to 
the  demon  of  commercial  advantage.  We  see 
Christian  people  indifferent,  pleasure-seeking,  ignor- 

< 


THE  MASTER’S  KINGDOM  IDEALS  55 


ant,  and  far  from  following  the  life  of  service.  Plans 
fail  and  success  seems  an  utopian  dream.  It  is  a 
gloomy,  discouraging  outlook,  and  we  need  the 
hope  of  God  in  our  hearts.  But  it  is  only  the  gloom 
of  the  too  close  view.  As  Dr.  Mathews  puts  it, 
“He  [the  Christian]  is  not  working  desperately, 
uncertain  of  ultimate  success.  He  is  working  with 
God  and  God  must  bring  in  his  own  kingdom.”1 
The  words  of  the  Master  are:  “Fear  not,  little  flock; 
for  it  is  your  Father’s  good  pleasure  to  bring  you 
the  kingdom.”  This  circumspective  view  has 
already  been  referred  to  as  one  of  the  elements  of 
value  in  Christ’s  appraisal  of  life. 

Having  then  considered  his  viewpoint,  we  are 
ready  to  ask  what  basic  principles  the  Master 
gives  us  for  the  solution  of  the  tangled  problems  of 
the  social  life.  What  are  the  ideals  of  the  Kingdom? 
They  may  be  comprised  under  three  statements: 
the  approach  to  life  from  within;  the  reclamation 
of  social  relations  through  service;  the  orientation 
of  life  with  respect  to  God. 

The  approach  to  life  from  within. — When  we 
remember  the  high  estimate  placed  by  the  Master 
on  the  worth  of  the  individual  it  will  occasion  no 
surprise  to  find  that  he  regards  the  individual  as 
the  social  unit.  The  first  ideal  of  the  Kingdom, 
then,  is  concerned  with  the  individual  and  his  inner, 
personal  life.  The  transformation  of  social  life  is 
to  take  place  by  making  vital  changes  in  folks  them¬ 
selves.  Jesus  insists  that  the  essential  things  are 
within,  for  it  is  from  the  heart  that  the  issues  of 
life  proceed.  He  paints  a  vivid  word  picture,  directs 
its  moral  toward  the  men  of  that  generation  who 

1  The  Social  Gospel ,  p.  29.  / 


56  THE  SOCIAL  MESSAGE  OF  JESUS 


need  it  most,  and  pointedly  shows  that  external 
whitewash  can  no  more  cover  inner  rottenness  in 
the  moral  world  than  in  the  physical  (Matthew 
23:  25-28).  It  is  not  enough  to  polish  life,  it  must 
be  renovated  throughout. 

In  our  anxiety  to  move  forward  rapidly  in  great 
reforms,  we  sometimes  forget  this  principle  that 
to  be  lasting  and  effective  social  change  must  involve 
the  individual.  It  takes  sound  timber  to  build  a 
sound  ship  and  it  takes  sound  people  to  build  a 
sound  community.  A  right  social  order  can  no 
more  be  constructed  of  unsound  folks  than  an  army 
can  be  recruited  from  cripples  or  a  college  faculty 
from  an  insane  asylum.  Harnack  says,  “The 
gospel  is  not  one  of  social  improvement  but  one 
of  spiritual  redemption.  ”  It  may  be  objected  that 
these  statements  are  directly  opposed  to  the  very 
proposition  with  which  we  started,  that  is,  the 
social  message  of  the  gospel.  On  consideration  it 
will  be  seen  that  such  is  not  the  case.  The  point 
is,  rather,  that  the  social  message  cannot  possibly 
be  vital  unless  it  is  deepseated  in  personal  worth 
and  achievement. 

It  seems,  then,  that  the  social  gospel  by  no  means 
neglects  the  personal  regeneration  of  the  individual, 
which  fact  some  have  feared  the  social  emphasis 
might  cause  to  be  obscured.  Rather  it  has  retained 
and  enriched  the  idea.  “The  most  important 
religious  insight,  the  insight  requisite  to  the  vitality 
of  social  religion  and  the  success  of  our  civiliza¬ 
tion,  is  the  insight  to  discern  that  if  the  kingdom 
of  God  is  to  come  in  the  earth,  it  must  first  come 
in  our  hearts.  Social  salvation  can  only  be  realized 
through  individual  salvation.  The  social  awaken- 


THE  MASTER’S  KINGDOM  IDEALS  57 


ing  must  be  realized  by  a  revival  of  personal  re¬ 
ligion.”2  We  may  well  add  that  the  kingdom  of 
God  can  by  no  means  come  in  our  hearts  unless  in 
so  doing  it  is  also  coming  on  earth.  The  major  em¬ 
phasis  of  the  social  gospel  is  on  the  rightness  of  the 
individual  and  of  his  environment.  Individual  regen¬ 
eration  and  social  regeneration  are  but  two  aspects 
of  the  same  thing — but  the  two  sides  of  the  shield. 

The  reclamation  of  life  through  service.— Man  has 
mhde  a  sad  mess  of  social  living.  In  his  selfishness  he 
has  departed  far  from  that  ancient  guiding  principle 
that  Jesus  restated  as  the  second  great  command¬ 
ment.  But  to  love  one’s  neighbor  is  more  than  an 
emotion,  something  other  than  a  state  of  mind. 
It  implies  helpful  doing,  as  Jesus  shows  by  his 
parable  of  the  Jericho  road.  The  Master’s  second 
great  social  principle  is  the  reclamation  of  social 
relations  through  service.  It  is  the  logical  outcome 
of  the  interest  which  Jesus  has  in  the  solidarity  of 
the  race.  It  means,  as  has  already  been  said,  that 
the  saved  individual  must  function  socially,  or,  as 
James  expressed  it,  must  show  his  faith  by  his  works. 
The  changed  life  of  the  individual  thus  becomes 
manifest  as  a  social  force. 

The  parables  of  the  Kingdom  (Matthew  13:  1-52) 
clearly  show  the  social  nature  of  the  kingdom  of 
God  and  the  leavening  power  of  its  gospel  (Mat¬ 
thew  13:  24-50).  “The  field  is  the  world.”  “The 
kingdom  of  heaven  is  like  unto  leaven.”  It  grows 
from  small  beginnings  as  mustard  springs  from  a 
tiny  seed.  In  fact,  the  test  of  an  individual’s  sound¬ 
ness  (salvation)  is  his  faithfulness  to  social  duties 
(Matthew  25:31-46).  “The  progress  of  Christian 

2  Finney,  Personal  Religion  and  the  Social  Awakening ,  p.  24. 


58  THE  SOCIAL  MESSAGE  OF  JESUS 


society  in  the  world  will  depend  upon  the  power 
which  each  nucleus  of  Christian  persons  gathered  into 
a  society  will  have  upon  the  surrounding  social  life.” 

This  idea  of  service  as  a  life  principle  is  set  forth 
by  Jesus  in  many  ways.  Consider  some  of  them. 
In  the  parable  of  the  unfruitful  fig  tree  (Luke  13 :  6-9) 
the  issue  is  clear:  be  useful  or  be  cut  down.  On 
another  occasion  the  sons  of  Zebedee  came  to  him 
eager  to  obtain  preferment  in  the  long-expected 
kingdom.  They  only  knew  one  road  to  position — 
the  favor  of  some  one  sitting  in  the  place  of  power. 
Jesus  quickly  set  them  right  and  stated  the  con¬ 
ditions  of  greatness  in  his  kingdom,  as  follows: 
“Whosoever  will  be  great  among  you,  let  him 
be  your  minister;  and  whosoever  will  be  chief 
among  you,  let  him  be  your  servant”  (Matthew  20: 
20-28).  The  good  Samaritan  has  become  an  ideal 
of  Christian  charity  because  he  turned  aside  to 
render  needed  service.  The  call  to  the  discipleship 
was  a  call  to  service.  The  labors  of  the  apostles 
were  characterized  by  the  spirit  which  Paul  describes 
in  these  words:  “Let  no  one  be  forever  seeking  his 
own  good,  but  let  each  seek  that  of  his  fellow  men” 
(1  Corinthians  10:  24).  Almost  the  last  word  that 
came  in  the  vision  of  Patmos  to  John  the  Aged  was, 
“My  reward  is  with  me,  that  I  may  requite  every 
man  in  accordance  with  what  his  conduct  has  been” 
(Revelation  22:  12). 

It  is  an  impressive  fact  that  Jesus  put  himself 
under  this  same  law  of  service.  He  asks  nothing 
of  his  followers  which  he  is  not  himself  willing  to 
do.  He  gave  the  disciples  a  vivid  illustration  by 
taking  the  place  of  a  household  servant  and  wash¬ 
ing  their  stained  feet.  In  the  great  high-priestly 


THE  MASTER’S  KINGDOM  IDEALS  59 


prayer  the  guiding  principle  of  his  whole  life  is 
expressed  in  the  words,  “For  their  sake  I  conse¬ 
crate  myself.”  Every  moment  of  his  life  was  an 
expression  of  this.  Sometimes  the  service  took 
humble  form,  ministering  to  physical  needs  such 
as  hunger  or  sick  bodies.  Again  the  soul  thirst  of 
a  Samaritan  woman,  or  the  intellectual  need  of  a 
Nicodemus  was  satisfied.  The  first  miracle  at  Cana 
was  a  helpful  response  to  a  human  need.  As  day 
after  day  the  Master  trod  the  weary  miles  over 
dusty  Judasan  roads,  there  was  unfolded  a  life  of 
service  that  reached  its  highest  in  the  supreme 
sacrifice  on  Calvary. 

The  orientation  of  life. — In  the  older  days,  when 
a  great  cathedral  was  erected,  care  was  taken  to 
have  it  properly  orientated,  that  is  to  say,  so  placed 
that  the  great  altar  should  be  in  the  eastern  end  of 
the  building.  Peculiar  efficacy  was  supposed  to 
be  given  to  prayer  when  the  petitioner  faced  the 
rising  sun.  Having  left  behind  the  superstition 
upon  which  such  a  custom  rested,  it  is  still  well 
for  us  to  remember  the  value  of  a  proper  orientation 
in  a  less  literal  sense.  The  physicists  tell  us  that  a 
bar  of  iron  is  made  up  of  minute  elements,  each  a 
tiny  magnet.  Their  arrangement  is  irregular,  some 
pointing  in  one  direction,  some  in  another.  Under 
the  influence  of  a  magnetic  field  they  rearrange 
themselves  so  that  they  all  point  in  one  direction 
and  we  say  the  iron  bar  has  become  magnetized. 
There  is  no  change  in  the  parts,  but  only  in  their 
direction,  their  arrangement.  They  have  become 
orientated  to  the  magnetic  field.  Without  attempt¬ 
ing  to  apply  these  illustrations — imperfect  at  best — 
too  literally,  they  indicate  this  truth:  that  there 


6o  THE  SOCIAL  MESSAGE  OF  JESUS 


is  an  important  factor  in  life  besides  the  individual 
acts  of  which  it  is  made  up.  The  great  relations 
are  of  importance  also.  It  makes  a  difference  which 
way  we  are  headed,  as  well  as  what  we  are  doing 
at  the  moment.  Among  these  relations  the  one 
of  supreme  importance  is  that  of  the  soul  to  God. 
It  matters  much  that  a  man  be  filial,  a  good  neigh¬ 
bor,  and  a  loyal  citizen.  But  it  matters  much  more 
that  he  be  at  one  with  God;  and,  of  course,  if  this 
latter  be  true,  the  lesser  relations  will  follow.  In 
fact,  one  cannot  be  in  right  relation  with  God  and 
wrong  in  attitude  toward  his  fellows. 

One  cannot  read  the  Gospels  and  miss  the  one 
great  master  purpose  of  Jesus’  life.  It  was  to  do 
his  Father’s  will.  That  was  not  only  his  supreme 
purpose;  it  was  his  only  purpose.  From  the  visit 
to  the  Temple  at  twelve  until  Gethsemane’s  shadows 
gather  round  him  “my  Father’s  business”  is  his 
one  concern.  Read  again  John  5:26-30;  36-38; 
8:28,  29;  12:44-50;  14:8-14  and  15:9-10.  In 
fact,  the  whole  book  of  John  reveals  Jesus’  con¬ 
sciousness  of  being  at  one  with  his  Father.  As 
Dr.  Fosdick  phrases  it,  “All  his  life  is  saturated 
with  this  consciousness  of  an  incommunicable  rela¬ 
tionship  with  God,  a  unique  union  of  life  with  the 
divine.”  It  is  also  his  ideal  for  his  followers.  It  is 
not  enough  to  follow  externally  the  things  Jesus 
said,  we  must  also  have  the  same  driving  motive, 
the  passion  to  serve  God.  Here,  then,  is  the  secret 
of  a  right  orientation  with  respect  to  God.  It  is 
precisely  the  same  as  the  purpose  of  Jesus,  to  know 
and  do  the  will  of  the  Father.  A  familiar  story 
told  of  President  Lincoln  illustrates  this  need  and 
at  the  same  time  reveals  the  secret  of  the  great 


THE  MASTER’S  KINGDOM  IDEALS  61 


liberator’s  power.  At  one  of  the  times  of  severe 
strain  during  the  war  a  friend  came  to  him  and 
said:  “Mr.  Lincoln,  the  Lord  is  with  us.  God  is 
surely  on  our  side  in  this  great  conflict.”  The 
answer  of  the  President,  gravely  and  quietly  given, 
was  this,  “I  am  less  anxious,  friend,  to  know  that 
the  Lord  is  on  our  side  than  I  am  to  make  sure 
that  we  are  on  the  Lord’s  side.” 

Exercises 

1.  What  is  meant  by,  “He  only  truly  sees  things 

who  sees  round  them  and  beyond  them.” 

2.  How  can  it  be  explained  that  a  State  senator, 

himself  a  kind  father,  should  vote  against  a 
child-labor  law? 

3.  Why  is  a  close-up  view  in  social  service  often 

discouraging? 

4.  Point  out  essential  differences  in  Christ’s  esti¬ 

mate  of  the  social  life  of  his  time  and  the 
view  of  the  Pharisees. 

5.  Why  could  not  an  ideal  community  be  expected 

in  a  convict  colony?  What  would  be  its 
defects? 

6.  How  large  a  proportion  of  the  population  may 

be  morally  unsound  without  social  risk  to 
the  community? 

7.  Give  an  original  example  of  the  social  risk  in 

individual  unsoundness. 

8.  Name  some  forces  which  are  social  safeguards 

operating  upon  individuals. 

9.  Are  there  any  social  problems  which  can  be 

solved  without  the  individual  approach? 

10.  Give  examples  of  social  change  through  service. 

11.  Interpret  the  parable  of  the  leaven. 


62 


THE  SOCIAL  MESSAGE  OF  JESUS 


12.  Explain  the  significance  of  the  Prince  of  Wales’ 

motto,  “Ich  dien.” 

13.  Is  the  ideal  of  service  peculiarly  a  Christian  one? 

14.  Which  is  more  important,  the  “act”  or  the 

“motive”  of  social  helpfulness? 

15.  Name  five  institutions  of  modern  life,  dom¬ 

inated  by  the  ideal  of  unselfish  service.  Five 
that  violate  it. 

16.  How  far  did  Jesus’  consciousness  of  a  peculiar  rela¬ 

tionship  with  God  affect  his  views  of  human  life? 

17.  Does  one’s  personal  attitude  toward  God  affect 

his  power  as  a  social  worker? 

Topics  for  Further  Study 

\ 

1.  The  evangelistic  message  of  the  social  gospel. 

2.  Does  the  remote  attitude  of  some  social  workers 

toward  the  church  result  in  loss  of  sympathy  on 
their  part? 

3 .  The  regeneration  of  ancient  society  through  service. 

4.  Jesus’  conception  of  the  Kingdom. 

5.  Will  the  readjustments  of  social  life  be  hastened 

by  applying  the  motives  of  religion  to  them? 

6.  May  we  expect  the  Kingdom  ever  to  be  fully  es¬ 

tablished? 

Suggested  Readings 

Mathews,  The  Social  Gospel ,  Chapter  II. 
Rauschenbusch,  Christianizing  the  Social  Order , 
Part  2. 

Taylor,  Religion  in  Social  Action ,  Chapter  I. 
Batten,  The  Social  Task  of  Christianity ,  Chapter  III. 
Kent,  The  Social  Teachings  of  the  Prophets  and 
Jesus ,  Chapters  XVI,  XVII,  XVIII. 

Finney,  Personal  Religion  and  the  Social  Awakening , 
Chapter  II. 


CHAPTER  VI 


A  NEW  DYNAMIC 

Jesus’  program  of  social  reconstruction  was  indi¬ 
cated  in  the  preceding  chapter.  It  is  very  simply 
stated,  involving  but  three  points,"’  the  personal 
approach  to  life  from  within,  the  reclamation  of 
social  relations  through  service,  the  orientation  of 
life  with  respect  to  God.  These  are  not  to  be  re¬ 
garded  as  consecutive  steps,  but,  rather,  as  three, 
phases  of  a  single  process.  Men  who  have  learned 
to  draw  upon  the  infinite  source  of  power  are  shaping 
their  environment  and  controlling  their  inner  liv¬ 
ing  to  conformity  with  Kingdom  ideals.  There  is 
no  elaborate  propaganda,  no  machinery  of  organiza¬ 
tion,  just  a  simple  message  spoken  to  a  few  fol¬ 
lowers  and  left  in  their  hearts  to  do  its  work.  Much 
of  the  secret  of  this  simplicity,  and  much  of  its 
power  as  well,  is  to  be  found  in  the  Master’s  true 
scale  of  values.  Jesus  did  not  disregard  possessions 
or  amusements  or  food  or  any  other  of  the  many 
life  values,  but  he  did  invariably  put  them  in  right 
relation  to  each  other  and  to  the  higher  values. 
He  saw  that  much  of  our  difficulty  comes  from  try¬ 
ing  to  have  mutually  exclusive  things.  God  and 
mammon  cannot  both  have  first  place.  Jesus 
revised  the  current  scales  of  values  in  many  ways. 
The  religionists  had  burdened  the  observance  of 
the  Sabbath  with  a  multitude  of  petty  rules  which 

63 


64  THE  SOCIAL  MESSAGE  OF  JESUS 


quite  overshadowed  its  spiritual  values.  It  was 
a  most  surprising  reversal  to  them  to  have  Jesus 
insist  that  man  is  of  more  importance  than  any 
institution,  even  a  time-honored  religious  custom 
(Mark  2:  27).  The  Oriental  idea  that  power  and 
position  were  to  be  used  for  personal  gain  was  firmly 
fixed  in  that  day,  but  the  Master  substituted  service 
as  the  badge  of  greatness. 

The  world  needs  sorely  to  learn  this  lesson.  So¬ 
cial  confusions  would  largely  disappear  and  life 
be  wonderfully  simplified  if  we  could  see  all  things 
in  their  true  proportions — put  first  things  first. 
Society  had  gone  on  insisting  that  might  is  greater 
than  right,  that  property  is  more  worth  while  than 
folks,  that  money  outweighs  brains,  that  a  majority 
is  always  right,  until  these  and  scores  of  other  fal¬ 
lacies  have  become  its  “practical”  working  rules. 
True,  some  ancient  lies,  like  the  divine  right  of 
kings,  have  been  laid  aside,  but  many  more  need 
to  go  to  the  scrap-heap.  If  we  could  but  catch  the 
Master’s  singleness  of  vision  and  his  sensitiveness 
to  moral  values,  then  his  program  of  social  life 
would  more  easilv  be  adopted. 

The  simplicity  of  the  Master’s  method.-  Contrast 
this  simplicity  of  method  with  the  elaborate  but 
incomplete  plans  of  man’s  contriving.  Think  of 
three  examples  taken  from  widely  separated  periods 
of  history.  Plato’s  republic,  where  the  philosophers 
were  to  rule,  sought  the  virtue  and  happiness  of 
the  individual  citizen.  Division  of  labor,  exact 
laws  for  the  selection  of  the  rulers,  the  limitation 
of  the  population  into  various  groups  were  among 
the  plans  proposed  to  overcome  the  recognized 
weaknesses  of  social  groups  of  that  time.  Two 


A  NEW  DYNAMIC 


65 


thousand  years  later  Sir  Thomas  More  wrote 
“Utopia,”  a  romance  of  a  happy  society  on  an 
imaginary  island.  This  ideal  contemplated  a  society 
where  none  should  be  idle  and  none  overworked. 
Happiness  and  the  common  good  was  to  be  the 
goal  of  all.  To  this  end  there  were  proposed  com¬ 
munity  of  property  interests,  gold  and  silver  used 
for  baser  vessels  only,  freedom  in  religion  and  only 
such  laws  as  were  absolutely  needed  and  could  be 
understood  by  any  reader.  Modern  socialism 
exhibits  a  wide  diversity  of  applications  of  its 
relatively  simple  fundamentals.  In  all  its  ramifi¬ 
cations  of  state  socialism,  socialists  of  the  chair, 
right  and  left  wings,  Fabians,  Utopians,  and  other 
varieties  are  developed  many  methods  of  meeting 
social  needs.  The  final  outcome,  however,  is  the 
same,  a  complete  revamping  of  society  so  that  the 
maladjustments  now  present  may  be  avoided. 
Numerous  other  programs  for  social  improvement 
might  be  mentioned  which  would  differ  in  prac¬ 
ticality  and  method.  Each  of  these  would  provide 
in  multiplied  detail  for  the  many  phases  of  life.  In 
their  incomplete  complexity  they  are  in  striking 
contrast  with  the  simple  completeness  of  the  plan 
of  Jesus. 

However,  though  the  program  is  simple,  its  pur¬ 
pose  is  amazing — nothing  less  indeed  than  the 
transformation  of  the  world.  The  note  of  this 
tremendous  project  was  first  sounded  in  prophecy: 
“He  hath  sent  me  to  bind  up  the  broken-hearted, 
to  proclaim  liberty  to  the  captives,  ...  to  comfort 
all  that  mourn.”  Christ  himself  had  the  vision 
clearly,  for  he  adds  after  reading  these  words  in 
the  synagogue:  “To-day  is  this  scripture  fulfilled 


66  THE  SOCIAL  MESSAGE  OF  JESUS 


in  your  hearing.”  Many  men  have  had  the  vision 
of  world-conquest — Alexander  and  Napoleon  and 
Wilhelm,  for  example — but  their  notion  of  conquest 
was  to  bend  the  nations  to  their  will,  to  acquire 
power,  to  establish  themselves.  Self-interest  was 
at  the  center  of  their  universe.  But  here  was  one 
who  thought  in  terms  of  brotherhood  and  helpful¬ 
ness  to  others.  In  the  very  humanity  of  Jesus’ 
program  its  transcendent  greatness  has  often  been 
missed.  “Come  unto  me,  all  ye  that  labor  and  are 
heavy  laden,  and  I  will  give  you  rest,”  seems  too 
simple  a  formula  for  world- transformations.  The 
fact  remains  that  Jesus’  life  and  teachings  released 
the  most  potent  force  the  world  has  known.  This 
consideration  should  give  new  meaning  to  those 
words  in  Luke  17:  20,  “The  kingdom  of  God  com- 
eth  not  with  observation,”  or,  as  Weymouth  sug¬ 
gests,  The  kingdom  of  God  does  not  so  come  that 
you  can  keep  close  to  it  and  watch  it  as  outsiders. 

A  new  insight  into  life. — This  transformation  of 
life  has  two  aspects.  There  is  the  overcoming  of 
evil  which,  as  we  have  seen,  is  a  process  affecting 
both  the  personal  life  and  instincts  and  also  the 
social  relations  and  institutions.  Its  ultimate  aim 
is  the  elimination  of  wrong  and  unsocial  impulses 
and  the  correction  of  conditions  which  have  come 
out  of  such  impulses.  Then  there  is  the  at  least 
equally  important  constructive  result  that  life  is 
given  a  new  objective.  In  fact,  to  merely  clean  out 
the  old  without  replacing  it  with  new  and  better 
things  may  result  in  great  disaster.  Remember 
Jesus’  parable  of  the  seven  spirits:  “No  sooner  has 
the  foul  spirit  gone  out  of  the  man  than  he  roams 
about  in  places  where  there  is  no  water,  seeking  rest 


A  NEW  DYNAMIC 


67 


but  finding  none.  Then  he  says,  T  will  return  to 
my  house  that  I  left’;  and  he  comes  and  finds  it 
unoccupied,  swept  clean  and  in  good  order.  Then 
he  goes  and  brings  back  with  him  seven  other  spirits 
more  wicked  than  himself,  and  they  come  in  and 
dwell  there;  and  in  the  end  that  man’s  condition 
becomes  worse  than  it  was  at  first.”1 

So  it  is  essential  that  not  only  shall  the  uncom¬ 
fortable  and  evil  things  of  life  be  removed,  but  that 
also  a  soul-satisfying  vision  shall  be  given.  “This 
transfiguration  of  common  life  is  what  Jesus  offers 
to  men  in  his  vision  of  the  kingdom  of  God.  He 
looks  upon  the  striving,  struggling  world  of  social 
movement  as  contributing  to  that  social  intention. 
He  sees  the 

.  .  .  one  far  off,  divine  event, 

To  which  the  whole  creation  moves. 

Neither  the  turbulence  of  the  stream,  nor  its  reac¬ 
tionary  eddies,  make  him  forget  the  ocean  to  which 
it  flows.  The  pettiness,  the  toil,  the  routine,  the 
insignificance  of  life — even  its  pain  and  bitterness 
— are  swept  into  the  movement  of  his  mighty 
hope,  and  become  a  part  of  its  greatness  instead 
of  an  obstacle  to  its  course.  Thus  the  teaching  of 
Jesus  gives  meaning  to  many  an  obscure  life,  caught 
in  the  perplexity  of  the  modern  world.  It  offers 
to  such  a  life,  not  first  of  all  a  new  set  of  circum¬ 
stances ,  but  a  new  insight  into  and  through  its 
circumstances.  ’  ’2 

Right  here  appears  the  essential  unlikeness  of 

1  Matthew  12:43-45. 

*  Peabody,  Jesus  Christ  and  the  Social  Question ,  p.  120.  The 
Macmillan  Company. 


68  THE  SOCIAL  MESSAGE  OF  JESUS 


Jesus’  social  program  to  every  other.  They  deal 
primarily  with  detailed  methods  and  readjust¬ 
ments.  He  puts  first  an  adequate  motive.  The 
things  which  men  should  do  are  not  so  hard  to 
define.  They  have  been  often  stated,  but  what 
power  is  great  enough  to  make  them  do  these  things? 
The  machinery  is  all  here,  but  where  is  the  steam 
to  run  it?  The  master  power,  the  new  dynamic 
which  Jesus  proposes,  is  Christian  love.  It  is  the 
keynote  of  the  gospel  message,  for  when  the  Master 
was  asked  to  indicate  the  greatest  commandment, 
he  replied,  “Thou  shaft  love  the  Lord  thy  God  with 
all  thy  heart,  and  with  all  thy  soul,  and  with  all 
thy  mind,  .  .  .  and  thy  neighbor  as  thyself.”3  One 
great  law  of  love;  two  objects — God  and  fellow  man. 
Again,  in  John  15:  12,  we  read,  “This  is  my  com¬ 
mandment,  that  ye  love  one  another.”  And  the 
apostle  writes:  “Ye  yourselves  are  taught  of  God 
to  love  one  another.”4  This  is  a  new  emphasis  on 
love,  for  while  it  was  present  in  a  secondary  way 
in  the  old  law,  Christ  raised  it  to  the  place  of  pre¬ 
eminence. 

The  dynamic  power  of  love. — Christian  love  is 
more  than  mere  affection.  Dr.  Francis  has  defined 
it  as  “intelligent  good  will  toward  all  mankind 
raised  to  the  degree  of  passion.”  Love  is  always 
something  other  than  liking.  It  is  possible  to  love 
those  whom  one  cannot  like.  A  few  days  ago  a 
poor  lad  sat  in  my  office.  He  had  been  caught 
stealing  from  his  fellow  students.  Investigation 
proved  him  to  be  a  thief,  a  liar,  guilty  of  immorality, 
a  “dope”  user — and  now  to  be  expelled  from  college. 


3  Matthew  22:  37-39. 

4  Thessalonians  4:9. 


A  NEW  DYNAMIC 


69 


One  can  hardly  picture  the  emotions  of  his  mother, 
in  her  home  in  an  Eastern  State,  when  she  finally 
hears,  as  she  must,  the  story  of  her  son’s  degrada¬ 
tion.  She  will  find  little  to  like  in  that  wayward 
boy,  but  can  we  doubt  that  she  will  still  love  him? 
This  thought  that  love  does  not  depend  upon  liking 
is  very  significant  in  understanding  the  nature  of 
Christian  love  and  the  possibility  of  obeying  the 
Master’s  injunction  to  love  one’s  enemies.  The 
apostle  tells  us  that  “Love  is  patient  and  kind. 
Love  knows  neither  envy  nor  jealousy.  Love  is 
not  forward  and  self-assertive;  .  .  .  she  finds  no 
pleasure  in  injustice  done  to  others,  but  joyfully 
rides  with  the  truth”  (1  Corinthians  13:4,  6). 
These  are  not  merely  the  marks  by  which  love  is 
to  be  recognized.  They  are  intrinsic  parts  of  its 
spirit,  inevitable  results  of  the  will  of  love.  It  is 
a  mistake  to  regard  Christian  love  as  just  an  affair 
of  the  emotions  and  dependent  upon  the  ebb  and 
flow  of  feelings.  Sometimes  the  will  must  command. 
I  must  be  “Captain  of  my  soul,”  and  say,  “Thus 
shalt  thou  act.”  Then  Christian  love  is  in  control, 
base  motives  are  put  down,  fine  instincts  released, 
brotherhood  achieved,  and  God  honored. 

There  is  a  good  deal  of  talk  about  the  brother- 
hood  of  man.  It  might  be  well  to  talk  less  and  prac¬ 
tice  it  more.  Christian  love  is  the  only  enduring 
basis  for  such  fraternity,  for  then  it  rings  true  and 
is  not  perfunctory  nor  condescending.  Jesus  expects 
such  fraternity  to  exist  among  his  followers,  for 
he  says,  “All  ye  are  brethren.”  Fraternal  love  is 
by  no  means  the  only  kind  of  love,  for  a  master 
may  love  a  slave  or  an  inferior  his  superior.  But 
among  the  disciples  of  Jesus  there  is  to  be  no  exer- 


70  THE  SOCIAL  MESSAGE  OF  JESUS 


cising  of  lordship  one  over  another,  so  that  fraternal 
love  with  its  leveling  effect  is  to  prevail. 

“But  this  noble  truth  of  the  fraternity  of  those 
who  are  children  of  God  cannot  be  limited  in  its 
practical  working  simply  to  the  church.  It  is  true 
that  it  would  be  overlooking  certain  fundamental 
differences  to  say  that  the  man  who  persists  in  sin 
is  equal  to  the  man  in  whom  the  Spirit  of  God  is 
really  living.  For  sin  is  the  great  unequalizing 
force  in  society,  and  one  of  its  most  persistent  forces 
is  selfishness,  and  selfishness  consists  in  making 
one’s  own  advantages  superior  to  those  of  other 
people.  But  the  Christian  cannot  treat  those  who 
treat  him  unfraternally  in  any  spirit  but  that  of 
fraternity.  The  attitude  of  the  elder  brother  toward 
the  prodigal  can  never  be  his  so  long  as  he  trusts 
the  impulses  of  the  Christian  experience.  Whether 
it  be  in  the  family  or  in  politics  or  in  business,  this 
principle  of  Jesus  must  always  be  operative.  True, 
the  Christian  is  not  to  cast  his  pearls  before  swine, 
but  he  is  not  to  treat  other  people  in  any  way  dif¬ 
ferent  from  that  in  which  he  would  like  to  be  treated 
himself.  Thus,  in  whatever  sphere  he  may  act, 
whether  it  be  in  his  capacity  as  citizen,  as  husband, 
or  as  a  neighbor,  he  will  bring  into  social  life  this 
fraternal  spirit.  That  is  the  only  possible  meaning 
of  the  “Golden  Rule.”5 

The  history  of  punishment  as  a  means  of  enforc¬ 
ing  justice  is  a  long  and  interesting  one  which  can 
but  be  hinted  at  here.  In  early  times  punishment 
was  left  in  the  hands  of  the  wronged  person  or  his 
friends,  and  so  more  than  frequently  partook  of 
the  nature  of  revenge.  It  is  a  long  road  from  this 


6  Mathews,  The  Social  Gospel ,  pp.  27,  28. 


A  NEW  DYNAMIC 


7i 


custom,  which  made  necessary  “Cities  of  Refuge,” 
to  the  theories  of  modern  criminology  which  con¬ 
sider  punishment  as  remedial  and  corrective  in 
character.  A  feeble  logic  has  sometimes  thought 
that  since  God  is  love  he,  therefore,  cannot  punish. 
Human  experience  in  almost  any  family  should 
teach  us  that  love  sometimes  must  punish.  But  this 
is  what  love  can  do:  it  can  save  justice  from  the 
danger  of  degenerating  into  revenge.  It  can  make 
people  kind  even  while  they  are  strictly  just.  So  it 
will  be  found  that  love  has  an  ennobling  power 
over  all  human  relations.  Even  when  they  are 
necessarily  rigorous,  as  in  the  example  just  given, 
the  saving  human  touch  is  possible.  Justice  may 
be  tempered  with  mercy  and  yet  lose  no  whit  of 
its  power. 

Here,  then,  lies  the  real  difference  between  Chris¬ 
tianity  and  other  social  plans.  They  all  propose 
justice,  the  square  deal,  honesty,  fraternity — they 
set  up  perfectly  good  machinery,  but  lack  a  pro¬ 
pulsive  force,  a  dynamic.  The  driving  force  which 
Jesus  proposes  is  love.  It  is  an  expulsive  force 
driving  a  man  out  of  the  narrow,  selfish  limits  of 
his  own  life.  A  heart  energized  by  the  love  of 
God  and  living  in  a  loving  fashion  toward  others 
is  the  hope  of  society. 

Exercises 

1.  Give  an  example  of  social  confusion  arising  from 

a  false  scale  of  values. 

2.  Give  two  illustrations  of  a  reversal  made  by 

Jesus  in  scales  of  values  current  in  his  day. 

3.  What  were  the  main  proposals  of  Plato’s 

Republic? 


72 


THE  SOCIAL  MESSAGE  OF  JESUS 


4.  Explain:  “There  are  two  ways  to  be  con¬ 

tented;  to  have  what  you  want  and  to  want 
what  you  have.” 

5.  Can  all  “pain  and  bitterness”  of  life  be  removed 

by  obtaining  a  new  insight  into  life? 

6.  Name  some  of  the  dynamics  of  life — the  things 

which  impel  men  to  divers  lines  of  action. 
Which  of  these  are  social  and  which  anti¬ 
social  in  results?  Would  the  substitution  of 
the  word  “Christian”  for  “social”  in  the  above 
question  cause  you  to  change  your  answer? 

7.  What  results  would  follow  the  application  of 

the  principle  of  Christian  love : 

(a)  to  child  labor. 

( b )  to  sectarian  disputes. 

(c)  to  our  attitude  toward  other  races. 

( d )  to  commercialized  amusements. 

8.  What  are  the  essentials  of  true  fraternal  feeling? 

9.  Do  college  fraternities  promote  fraternity? 

10.  Is  love  incompatible  with  justice?  Why  do  they 

sometimes  appear  to  be  in  conflict? 

11.  D  oes  the  exercise  of  Christian  love  involve  sacrifice? 

12.  Is  the  element  of  revenge  ever  present  in  our 

punishment  of  criminals? 

13.  Give  an  example  of  change  in  a  social  attitude 

due  to  the  action  of  Christian  love. 

14.  Do  the  following  things  help  or  hinder  the  indi¬ 

vidual  in  following  the  law  of  love  in  his 
social  relations? 

(a)  A  college  education. 

( b )  Membership  in  a  church. 

(c)  Belonging  to  a  fraternal  order. 

(d)  The  competition  of  business. 

(e)  Foreign  travel. 


A  NEW  DYNAMIC 


73 


15.  “If  a  man  loved  his  enemies  and  turned  the 
other  cheek,  would  he  be  everybody’s  door¬ 
mat  or  everybody’s  friend  and  refuge?” 
(Rauschenbusch.) 

Topics  for  Further  Study 

1.  Jesus’  life  as  an  example  of  sacrificial  love. 

2.  The  Golden  Rule  as  a  business  principle. 

3.  The  comprehensive  simplicity  of  the  gospel  of 

living. 

4.  Modern  society’s  impediments  to  a  love-governed 

life. 

5.  The  God  of  law  is  a  God  of  love. 

6.  The  place  of  love  in  the  Mosaic  law. 

Suggested  Readings 

Mathews,  The  Social  Gospel ,  Chapter  III. 

Mathews,  The  Gospel  and  the  Modern  Man ,  Chap¬ 
ter  V. 

Peabody,  Jesus  Christ  and  the  Social  Question, 
Chapter  II. 

Rauschenbusch,  Christianizing  the  Social  Order, 
pp.  47-68. 


•1 


CHAPTER  VII 


IS  THERE  PROGRESS? 

The  gospel  of  Jesus  has  an  individualistic  message 
with  a  social  outreach.  It  proposes  to  transform 
human  society  by  the  brotherly  actions  of  people 
whose  hearts  have  been  renewed.  Its  simple  law 
is  that  one  should  do  unto  others  as  he  would  have 
others  do  unto  him.  The  dynamic  which  is  to 
bring  this  to  pass  is  the  power  of  Christian  love. 
Jesus  left  this  gospel  resident  in  the  hearts  of  a  few 
disciples  and  trusted  to  its  expulsive  force  to  trans¬ 
form  the  world.  He  placed  a  little  yeast  in  a  very 
great  lump  and  expressed  his  satisfaction  in  the 
words,  “ I  have  finished  the  work  which  thou  gavest 
me  to  do.”1  Has  this  transformation  taken  place? 
Is  the  lump  at  all  leavened?  Is  our  present-day 
social  order  Christian?  What  is  a  Christian  social 
order?  When  is  a  given  social  institution  Chris¬ 
tian?  These  are  some  of  the  questions  which  come 
promptly  to  mind  as  we  think  of  the  social  ends 
contemplated  by  the  program  of  Jesus.  Before 
attempting  to  indicate  a  method  of  approach  to 
these  questions  let  us  consider  some  of  the  reasons 
for  believing  that  these  social  benefits  are  indeed 
contemplated  in  the  world-plan  which  Jesus  pro¬ 
posed. 

Social  change  the  plan  of  the  Master. —  The  social 


1  John  17:  4. 


74 


IS  THERE  PROGRESS? 


75 


nature  of  the  duties  enjoined  upon  his  followers  is  the 
primary  reason.  This  has  already  been  somewhat 
fully  discussed  in  preceding  chapters.  A  full  cat¬ 
alogue  of  these  social  duties  is  unnecessary;  some 
of  them  may  be  mentioned  which  will  indicate  the 
wide  scope  of  Jesus’  expectations  for  his  followers. 
They  are  to  be  charitable  and  render  helpful  service 
to  those  in  need  (Luke  io:  30-37;  Matthew  5:  1-4). 
Hatred  and  revenge  are  to  be  put  aside  (Matthew 
5:  22,  38-40)  and  purity  of  life  and  thought  sought 
for  (Matthew  5:  28,  29).  Humility  is  commended 
(Matthew  18:  1-5)  and  a  forgiving  spirit  enjoined 
(Matthew  18:  21,  22).  In  short,  the  Christian  is 
to  be  a  better  father,  a  truer  husband,  and  a  nobler 
citizen  and  neighbor  than  he  would  without  the 
Spirit  of  God  in  his  heart. 

The  Christianizing  of  the  social  order  was  the  very 
aim  with  which  Christianity  started .  Our  informa¬ 
tion  about  the  early  church  is  meager,  obtained 
mainly  from  the  book  of  Acts  and  the  Epistles. 
Furthermore,  what  expressions  are  found  there  are 
modified  by  two  important  considerations.  One  is 
the  hampering  effect  of  the  Roman  rule.  The 
idea  of  social  change  and  improvement  would  have 
been  a  very  dangerous  one  to  talk  much  about, 
and  it  is  not  strange  that  little  is  said  concerning 
it  in  the  Epistles.  To  have  attacked  slavery,  polit¬ 
ical  corruption,  and  public  graft  would  have  been 
to  expose  the  church  to  even  more  severe  peril 
than  already  threatened  it.  Again,  it  must  always 
be  remembered  that  during  that  period  there  was 
expected  the  immediate  return  of  the  Lord  to  set 
up  his  kingdom,  when  all  these  things  would  come 
about  as  a  matter  of  course.  This  latter  attitude 


76  THE  SOCIAL  MESSAGE  OF  JESUS 


has  not  disappeared  yet,  for  there  are  to-day  some 
people  so  concerned  with  the  probable  date  of  this 
second  coming  that  they  have  no  time  for  some  very 
evident  present  duties.  A  minister  in  a  neighboring 
town  said,  “I  have  no  interest  in  social  betterment. 
Jesus  will  take  care  of  that  when  he  comes.” 

In  spite  of  these  two  circumstances,  however,  a 
study  of  the  early  church  reveals  its  social  vision. 
One  evidence  of  this  is  that  the  social  teachings  of 
Jesus  were  embodied  in  the  Gospels.  These  books 
were  all  written  many  years  after  his  death  and 
record  the  things  which  seemed  of  major  importance 
to  the  authors.  It  is,  therefore,  significant  and 
indicative  of  the  attitude  of  the  early  Christians 
that  these  social  sayings  are  preserved.  Again,  other 
evidence  is  found  in  the  organization  of  the  early 
churches  and  Christian  communities.  They  pro¬ 
vided  for  the  common  religious  worship,  but  at 
least  equally  important  was  the  provision  for  mutual 
helpfulness.  In  charity,  for  example,  there  was  an 
open-handedness  which  gave  the  church  such  a 
start  in  this  direction  that  it  has  been  the  chief 
charitable  agency  throughout  the  centuries.  “This 
fraternal  helpfulness  was  more  than  mere  religious 
kindliness.  It  was  animated  by  the  consciousness 
of  a  creative  social  mission  and  accompanied  by  a 
spirit  of  social  unrest  which  proves  the  existence  of 
powerful  currents  of  democratic  feeling.  Under 
the  first  impact  of  its  ideas  and  spirit,  men  and 
women  tried  to  realize  at  once  those  social  changes 
which  have  actually  been  accomplished  in  centuries 
of  development.”2 

With  the  passing  years  the  church  ceased  to  be 


2  Christianity  and  the  Social  Crisis,  p.  141.  The  Macmillan  Company. 


IS  THERE  PROGRESS? 


77 


a  fugitive  band  and  came  to  a  position  of  great 
power.  Its  organization  was  developed  and  its 
leaders  became  concerned  with  discussions  of  doc¬ 
trine  and  involved  in  politics.  How,  with  this 
growth  in  popularity,  the  original  social  ideal  was 
obscured,  and  nearly  lost  is  beyond  the  limits  of 
this  discussion.  This  is,  however,  exactly  what 
happened,  and  the  present  generation  is  witnessing 
a  return  of  interest  and  the  “rebirth  of  the  social 
hope.”3  The  return  to  the  original  conception  of 
the  kingdom  of  God  as  a  wonderful,  present  possi¬ 
bility,  and  not  simply  a  glorious  future  hope,  will 
necessitate  new  thinking,  new  action,  and  perhaps 
new  theology  for  great  sections  of  Christendom. 
Consider,  for  example,  the  hymnals.  How  small 
and  meager  the  sections  devoted  to  hymns  of  service 
and  social  vision!  New  hymns,  new  prayers,  and  new 
creeds  will  be  needed  to  define  the  goals  and  express 
the  purposes  of  the  Kingdom  that  is  here  and  now. 

The  individualist’s  objections. — The  position  indi¬ 
cated  in  the  preceding  paragraphs  is  by  no  means 
the  unanimous  view  of  Christian  people  to-day. 
There  are  those  who  very  radically  and  very  sin¬ 
cerely  disagree  with  it.  No  one  doubts  that  the 
transformation  of  individual  lives  is  one  result  of 
#  the  teachings  of  Jesus.  Will  the  application  of 
these  teachings  also  result  in  changing  society,  in 
remaking  human  institutions?  There  are  some 
people  who  do  not  think  so;  they  do  not  believe 
that  the  ideas  of  righteousness  found  in  the  Sermon 
on  the  Mount  will  really  ever  operate  among  nations 
or  in  social  life.  They  believe  in  the  moral  life  of 


3  For  a  helpful  discussion  of  this  loss  of  the  social  ideal  see  Chris¬ 
tianizing  the  Social  Order ,  Part  2,  ('hapters  II,  III,  and  IV. 


78  THE  SOCIAL  MESSAGE  OF  JESUS 


individuals  but  not  of  the  social  group.  To  such 
people  the  kingdom  of  God  is  not  a  present  possi¬ 
bility  but  a  future  hope  to  be  realized  either  in 
another  world  or  through  a  new  dispensation  in 
this  one.  The  Scriptures  seem  to  them  to  teach 
that  there  is  no  hope  of  progress  and  that  “every¬ 
thing  is  to  become  as  Sodom  and  Gomorrah.” 

Perhaps  the  best  answer  to  this  is  that  “there 
can  be  no  complete  salvation  of  the  individual 
apart  from  the  heavenly  kingdom;  there  can  be  no 
process  of  working  out  our  salvation  with  God’s 
help,  except  we  bring  God  into  increasing  control 
of  the  politics,  the  industry,  the  domestic  life  of 
the  world.  Such  control  can  never  be  absolute  as 
long  as  sin  is  in  society,  but  it  can  be  made  ever 
more  complete.  Such  a  conception  to  the  practical 
politician  may  seem  an  iridescent  dream,  but  to 
the  Christian  it  is  sober  reality.  It  is  the  call  of 
Christ’s  spirit  in  all  Christians  to  bring  these  ideals 
of  Jesus  into  social  life.  .  .  .  Thus,  though  it  is  true, 
as  has  already  been  said,  that  the  Christlike  indi¬ 
vidual  is  the  final  goal  of  all  progress,  it  is  just  as 
true  that  such  an  individual  is  impossible  except 
in  connection  with  the  kingdom  of  God.”4  Now, 
this  does  not  mean  that  an  individual  may  not 
attempt  to  live  the  Christian  life  amid  unchristian 
surroundings.  In  fact,  such  attempts  are  rather 
frequently  and  successfully  made.  What  Dr. 
Mathews  would  point  out  is  that  completeness  of 
Christian  experience  is  normally  possible  only 
within  the  Kingdom;  that  is,  it  is  possible  only  to 
the  one  who  is  surrounded  by  others  who  are  striving 
in  the  same  direction. 


4  Mathews,  The  Social  Gospel,  pp.  21,  22. 


IS  THERE  PROGRESS? 


79 


The  attitude  of  many  of  those  who  hold  this 
‘‘individualistic”  view  is  rather  well  expressed  by  a 
certain  type  of  hymn  such  as: 

“Traveling  through  a  barren  land 
O’er  the  desert’s  scorching  sand.” 

Earth  is  a  place  to  be  escaped  from,  human  society 
is  a  snare,  the  church  a  place  of  temporary  refuge 
for  weary  pilgrims.  Bunyan’s  allegory  of  escape 
from  the  City  of  Destruction  and  an  anxious  pressing 
on  to  the  Celestial  City  seems  to  them  a  complete 
picture  of  the  Christian  life.  The  totality  of  the 
gospel  message  is  to  them  a  personal  salvation,  an 
escape  from  future  punishment  and  an  avenue  to 
future  bliss.  Quite  naturally  and  logically  the 
business  of  the  church  is  felt  to  be  the  “snatching 
of  brands  from  the  burning.”  As  has  already  been 
brought  out,  the  hope  of  social  regeneration  does 
not  minimize,  still  less  abandon,  the  need  of  per¬ 
sonal  salvation.  On  the  contrary,  it  rests  its  hope 
of  social  soundness  on  the  integrity  of  the  individual. 
Where  the  one  who  holds  this  view  differs  from  the 
“individualist”  is  in  the  functioning  of  this  saved 
life.  He  believes  that  the  gospel  of  justice  and 
mercy  and  love  will  work  and  that  the  Kingdom 
will  be  established  among  men.  When  such  a  one 
uses  the  Lord’s  Prayer  he  says,  “Thy  kingdom 
come,  thy  will  be  done  on  earth  as  it  is  in  heaven,” 
with  the  conviction  that  such  an  outcome  is  his 
Master’s  will  and  desire  and  that  he  wishes  each 
of  his  followers  to  whole-heartedly  work  for  its 
fulfillment. 

Testing  the  social  order. — Let  us  now  return  to 
the  consideration  of  the  questions  proposed  about 


8o  THE  SOCIAL  MESSAGE  OF  JESUS 


the  institutions  of  social  life.  What  is  a  Christian 
social  order?  When  is  a  given  social  institution 
Christian?  The  term  “ Christian”  has  come  to  be 
used  rather  loosely,  and  we  speak  of  Christian 
notions,  Christian  ideals,  a  Christian  civilization, 
etc.,  with  little  real  intent  to  define  these  things 
as  conforming  to  the  ideals  of  Christ.  In  the  care¬ 
less  thought  of  the  street  all  is  Christian  that  is 
not  pagan.  It  is  in  the  more  restricted  and  truer 
sense  of  the  word  that  we  use  it  here,  and  the  inquiry 
is  about  likeness  to  the  ideals  and  teaching  of  Jesus 
the  Christ.  To  arrive  at  this,  four  tests  may  be 
proposed. 

First.  See  if  it  conforms  to  the  actual  and  specific 
teaching  of  Jesus  concerning  it.  Where  this  is  possi¬ 
ble  it  is,  of  course,  the  most  certain  and  satisfactory 
test  that  can  be  used.  When  Jesus  makes  a  direct 
statement,  as  about  the  permanence  of  the  mar¬ 
riage  relation  for  example,  there  can  be  no  doubt 
as  to  the  Christian  standard.  It  is  conceivable  that 
men  might  reject  the  teaching,  might  question  its 
value,  or  neglect  its  application,  but  certainly  the 
authority  of  Christ  to  state  the  conditions  for  Chris¬ 
tian  living  cannot  be  disputed.  Christians  might 
easily  fail  to  agree  upon  standards  of  action,  as 
they  have  done  so  often.  The  church  may  be 
mistaken  in  its  positions,  but  surely  the  founder  of 
Christianity  will  have  an  authoritative  note  when  he 
chooses  to  sound  it.  These  direct  statements  will 
often  be  quite  explicit,  in  other  cases  less  so  and 
upon  many  subjects  Jesus  will  be  entirely  silent. 
Relatively  speaking,  these  specific  teachings  will  be 
few  although  clear  and  definite  when  they  do  occur. 

Second.  Consider  the  incidental  teaching  found  in 


IS  THERE  PROGRESS? 


81 


other  connections.  Frequently  while  talking  about 
some  matter  the  Master  throws  a  strong  light  on 
something  else.  Thus  the  parable  of  the  Good 
Samaritan  was  spoken  to  illustrate  the  command 
quoted  just  previously  about  loving  one’s  fellow 
men.  Incidentally,  it  furnishes  an  excellent  pro¬ 
gram  of  poor  relief.  These  less  direct  teachings  are 
of  great  value  and  are  to  be  carefully  considered. 

Third.  Does  it  agree  with  the  general  ideals  of  the 
Kingdom?  The  conclusions  reached  in  this  way 
will  be  quite  as  final,  but  more  difficult  of  attain¬ 
ment.  It  is  much  easier  for  a  surgeon  examining 
recruits  for  the  army  to  find  a  man’s  height  and 
weight  than  to  say  whether  or  not  he  is  in  good 
health.  Estimating  the  number  of  correct  answers 
in  an  examination  paper  in  algebra  is  much  simpler 
than  determining  the  student’s  knowledge  of  the 
principles  involved.  One  may  keep  all  the  Ten 
Commandments  in  form  and  still  be  unethical, 
unloving,  and  unchristian  in  spirit.  Nevertheless, 
this  third  test  is  one  of  great  importance!  The 
fundamental  life  principles  of  the  gospel  are  so  far- 
reaching  that  human  character  and  social  institu¬ 
tions  in  their  entirety  may  be  rested  upon  them. 
When  Jesus  says,  “Love  your  neighbor,”  the  under¬ 
standing  of  love  and  the  defining  of  one’s  neighbor 
may  take  time  and  careful  thought.  Paul’s  def¬ 
inition  of  love  as  “the  greatest  of  these”  is  more 
than  a  fine  phrase;  it  is  a  just  estimate  of  the  poten¬ 
tial  power  of  a  right  principle. 

Fourth.  Does  the  institution  or  custom  help  or 
hinder  man’s  highest  development?  So  sure  are  we 
of  the  good  will  of  Jesus’  gospel  that  this  test  may  be 
depended  upon.  In  a  sense  this  test  includes  all 


82  THE  SOCIAL  MESSAGE  OF  JESUS 


the  others.  Jesus’  utterances  are  not  true  just 
because  he  says  them.  Rather  he  says  them  be¬ 
cause  they  are  true.  The  word  of  Allah  is  law  to 
the  Mussulman  because  it  is  his  word,  not  because 
of  inherent  truth.  It  is  an  Oriental  conception  of 
despotic  rulership.  God  through  Jesus  expresses  the 
truth  which  is  His  eternal  nature. 

The  method  of  procedure  will  then  be  some¬ 
thing  like  this.  First,  an  investigation  to  give 
familiarity  with  the  actual  conditions  of  social  life. 
A  knowledge  of  the  gospel  message  must  also  be 
had.  Then  there  may  be  made  an  estimate  of  the 
conformity  of  conditions  with  the  gospel  standards. 
Perhaps  the  method  will  not  always  follow  these 
three  steps  in  a  formal  fashion,  but  certainly  they 
must  always  be  included  eventually.  In  the  fol¬ 
lowing  chapters  the  method  will  be  used  in  a  few 
cases  with  the  hope  that  it  will  suggest  a  fruitful 
field  for  further  study. 

We  shall  not  find  any  human  institution  free  from 
fault  or  wholly  Christianized.  Even  the  church 
fails  to  measure  up  to  standard,  and  so  ancient  and 
so  fine  a  thing  as  the  family  falls  short  when  placed 
beside  the  simple  but  lofty  ideals  of  Jesus.  On  the 
other  hand,  there  will  be  few,  if  any,  of  the  expres¬ 
sions  of  human  life  that  are  wholly  bad.  The  most 
hopeful  thing  that  may  be  expected  is  progress, 
for  it  is  true  that  where  we  stand  still  we  go  back¬ 
ward.  This  progress  may  not  be  always  easy  to 
see.  Oftentimes  the  comparison  must  be  made 
over  pretty  long  intervals  to  be  sure  of  the  actual 
movement.  The  surface  ripples  and  waves  do  not 
always  tell  the  direction  of  the  tide;  it  is  the  deep 
under-surface  movement  that  counts. 


IS  THERE  PROGRESS? 


83 


There  is  too  the  necessity  of  seeing  clearly  the 
sources  of  social  change.  When  improvement  is 
found  a  great  interest  attaches  to  the  question 
“Why?”  What  has  been  the  driving  force  that  has 
brought  about  the  change?  There  will  be  the 
temptation  to  overestimate  the  work  of  the  church, 
to  complacently  assume  credit  which  is  not  deserved. 
On  the  other  hand,  it  not  unfrequently  happens  that 
the  effect  of  Christian  teaching  is  discredited.  The 
laxness  and  ineptitude  of  the  church  are  noted  and  the 
readiness  of  other  agencies  credited,  without  remem¬ 
bering  that  they  have  their  roots  deep  in  the  church 
and  its  influence.  Whatever  may  be  found  about 
the  various  agencies,  this  much  will  be  surely  seen: 
that  the  gospel  of  Jesus  Christ  is  the  mighty  power 
back  of  social  improvement.  Place  the  second  cen¬ 
tury  beside  the  twentieth  and  the  contrast  will 
appear.  Put  Christian  lands  over  against  non- 
Christian,  or  study  the  changes  that  follow  the 
preaching  of  the  gospel  in  heathen  darkness,  and 
the  transforming  power  of  the  Good  News  is  seen. 

Exercises 

1.  Give  evidence  that  the  world  is  growing  better. 

2.  What  is  the  most  nearly  Christian  of  our  social 

institutions?  Which  is  the  least  so? 

3.  Quote  two  statements  of  Jesus,  indicating  the 

social  purpose  of  his  teaching. 

4.  Give  four  duties  of  a  social  nature  which  Jesus 

expects  of  his  disciples. 

5.  Is  it  true  that  “A  Christlike  individual  is  im¬ 

possible  except  in  connection  with  the  king¬ 
dom  of  God”? 

6.  What  evidence  can  you  find  in  the  book  of 


84  THE  SOCIAL  MESSAGE  OF  JESUS 


Acts  concerning  the  social  nature  of  the  early 
church? 

7.  Is  there  any  incompatibility  between  a  convic¬ 

tion  that  the  gospel  has  a  social  significance 
and  a  belief  in  the  second  coming  of  Christ? 

8.  What  direct  teachings  of  Jesus  about  specific 

social  problems  can  you  recall? 

9.  What  things  would  you  consider  to  be  included 

under  “man’s  highest  development”? 

10.  What  new  moral  standards  should  result  from 

the  economic  change  of  the  last  century? 

11.  Transportation  has  been  revolutionized  in  the 

last  century.  Give  some  moral  standards 
between  nations  and  races  which  have  been 
revised  as  a  result. 

12.  “Does  human  nature  welcome  a  moral  advance?” 

13.  Do  young  people  or  old  contribute  most  to 

advancing  moral  standards? 

Topics  for  Further  Study 

1.  The  family  in  1920  and  in  the  first  century. 

2.  Personal  Christianity  as  dependent  on  environ¬ 

ment. 

3.  The  church  as  a  social  agency. 

4.  The  social  activities  of  the  apostolic  church. 

5.  Intellectual  advance  and  moral  standards. 

6.  Modern-day  Pharisees. 

Suggested  Readings 

Batten,  The  Social  Task  of  Christianity ,  Chapter  IV. 
Rauschenbusch,  Christianizing  the  Social  Order ,  Part 
2,  Chapters  II  and  III;  Christianity  and  the  Social 
Crisis ,  Chapter  III. 

Finney,  Personal  Religion  and  the  Social  Awakening , 
Chapter  I. 


PART  TWO 


SOME  PRACTICAL  APPLICATIONS  OF  THE 
GOSPEL’S  TEACHING 

“We  may  dream  and  exult  ever  so  much  over  a  world 
growing  better,  but  unless  we  can  somehow  bring  social 
service  down  into  close  contact  with  the  details  of  our 
lives  and  actually  live  by  it  as  a  motive,  one  of  two  things 
will  happen:  we  shall  either  grow  discouraged  at  the 
futility  of  our  lives,  or  else  we  shall  abstract  our  religion 
from  our  lives,  praying  and  singing  and  exulting  over  a 
Kingdom-dream  that  we  can  only  dream  about,  while 
meantime  our  daily  lives  are  prayerless,  visionless,  and 
godless.”1 

In  the  preceding  seven  chapters  some  of  the  social  im¬ 
plications  of  Jesus’  teachings  have  been  indicated.  Start¬ 
ing  with  the  essentially  moral  quality  of  all  the  problems 
of  the  social  order,  those  ideals  of  the  Kingdom  were 
examined  in  which  it  is  proposed  to  find  a  solution  for 
these  problems.  These  ideals  rest  upon  the  worth  of  the 
individual  and  the  solidarity  of  the  human  family.  The 
next  section  will  be  given  to  a  more  careful  examination 
of  the  second  of  these  ideals,  the  reclamation  of  social 
relations  through  service.  What  changes  would  take 
place  in  the  various  social  institutions  if  all  men  should 
act  under  the  impulse  of  love? 

In  chapter  seven  a  method  was  suggested  to  be  used  in 
testing  social  procedure  for  Christian  idealism.  In  the 
next  few  chapters  the  attempt  will  be  made  to  use  this 
method  in  specific  cases.  Of  necessity  this  study  cannot 
be  at  all  complete.  If,  however,  some  lines  of  thought 
are  suggested,  and  especially  if  interest  in  further  and 
more  careful  study  is  stimulated,  the  writer’s  purpose 
will  be  met. 


Finney,  Personal  Religion  and  the  Social  Awakening ,  pp.  22,  23. 


CHAPTER  VIII 


THE  FAMILY 

Probably  the  most  ancient  of  all  our  social  insti¬ 
tutions  is  the  family;  certainly  it  is  one  of  the  most 
important.  It  has  sometimes  been  defined  as  the 
social  unit.  It  is  the  only  social  institution  which 
is  universal  in  its  touch  upon  the  human  kind,  for 
every  one  sustains  family  relationships  at  some  time. 

Divorce. — In  studying  the  family  one  soon  dis¬ 
covers  the  growing  tendency  toward  instability  in 
the  marriage  relation.  Divorce  is  a  world-wide 
evil  and  on  the  increase.  Among  civilized  nations 
the  United  States  has  the  unenviable  record  of 
leading  in  the  number  of  separations.  “In  the  year 
1905,  for  example,  there  were  20,000  more  mar-  / 
riages  legally  dissolved  in  the  United  States  than 
in  all  the  rest  of  the  Christian  civilized  world  put 
together.  In  that  year  in  France  one  marriage 
was  legally  dissolved  to  every  thirty  marriage 
ceremonies  performed;  in  Germany,  only  one  mar¬ 
riage  was  legally  dissolved  to  every  forty-four 
marriage  ceremonies  performed;  in  England,  only 
one  marriage  legally  dissolved  to  every  four  hun¬ 
dred  marriage  ceremonies  performed.  But  in  the 
United  States  the  proportion  was  about  one  to 
twelve.”1  Furthermore,  it  is  estimated  that  in  this 


1  Bogardus,  Introduction  to  Sociology ,  p,  66.  The  University  of 
Southern  California  Press. 

87 


88  THE  SOCIAL  MESSAGE  OF  JESUS 


country  the  number  of  divorces  is  increasing  three 
times  as  fast  as  the  population. 

The  following  tabulation  has  been  compiled  from 
the  United  States  Census  reports  for  1916.  The 
figures  show  the  number  of  marriages  per  100,000 
population,  the  number  of  divorces  per  100,000  and 
the  ratio  of  marriages  to  divorces: 


Country 

Marriages 

Divorces 

Marriages 
to  One 
Divorce 

United  States. . . 

18901900 

1906 

1916 

1890 

1900 

1906 

1916 

1890 

1900 

1906 

1916 

910 

930 

1,020 

1,050 

53 

73 

84 

1 12 

17 

13 

12 

9 

Austria . 

750 

820 

. . . 

. . . 

3 

6 

•  • 

275 

137 

•  • 

Belgium . 

730 

860 

790 

6 

10 

13 

122 

86 

•  • 

France . 

700 

770 

77o 

. . . 

17 

20 

28 

•  • 

61 

38 

28 

Great  Britain . . . 

780 

800 

760 

. . . 

2 

2 

2 

390 

400 

380 

Hungary . . 

820 

890 

840 

7 

II 

18 

117 

81 

47 

N.  B. — The  figures  for  all  countries  except  the  United  I  §tates  are  for  1905 
instead  of  1906. 


Something  of  the  relative  situations  between  the 
various  States  is  shown  by  this  comparison  of  the 
ratios  of  divorces  to  100,000  population: 

YEAR  HIGHEST  RATIO  LOWEST  RATIO 

1890.. ..  Colorado . 197  North  Carolina .  12 

1900.. ..  Washington . 184  Delaware .  16 

1906.. ..  Washington . 220  North  Carolina .  18 

1916.. ..  Nevada . 607  District  of  Columbia..  13 

These  ratios  are,  of  course,  affected  by  the  vary¬ 
ing  stringency  of  the  divorce  laws  in  the  different 
States.  Perhaps  most  of  the  large  number  recorded 
against  Nevada  were  dissolutions  of  marriages  per¬ 
formed  elsewhere.  The  inevitable  result  of  legally 


THE  FAMILY 


89 


dissolving  so  many  marriages  annually  is  an  un¬ 
stable  condition  of  the  family.  Various  causes  are 
suggested  for  this  instability.  Among  them  may 
be  mentioned  (1)  the  decay  of  religion,  (2)  an 
increased  spirit  of  individualism,  (3)  the  industrial 
“emancipation”  of  women,  (4)  subnormal  housing 
conditions,  (5)  late  marriage,  (6)  laxness  of  divorce 
laws.  It  would  seem,  however,  that  none  of  these 
alleged  causes  are  truly  fundamental.  They  may 
be  important  contributory  sources,  but  they  in  turn 
root  down  into  substantial  changes  in  the  ideals  of 
marriage  and  the  home.  Much  of  this  has  come  * 
through  the  gradual  surrender  by  the  home  of  its 
various  social  functions. 

In  more  primitive  times,  when  the  family  was 
isolated  and  social  agencies  were  less  developed,  the 
functions  of  the  family  were  much  more  varied. 
Sanitary  measures,  hospitals,  and  doctors  have 
replaced  the  family  medicine  shelf.  The  police  force 
and  the  fire  department  are  depended  upon  for 
protection.  Barter  and  exchange  and  manufacture 
are  no  longer  carried  on  by  the  family  group.  Edu¬ 
cation,  including  training  in  trade  technic,  politics,^ 
morals,  and  religion,  has  been  turned  over  to  the 
school  and  the  church.  Of  all  the  original  functions 
of  the  family  there  is  only  one,  reproduction,  which 
has  not  been  socialized  to  a  greater  or  less  degree. 
This  has  inevitably  lessened  the  influence  of  the 
family  on  its  members  and  lowered  its  stability. 
Contrast  the  situation  of  the  farm  lad  of  former 
times  with  the  city  boy  of  to-day.  The  former 
grew  up  in  the  house  where  his  father  and,  perhaps, 
his  grandfather  had  lived;  ate  food  grown  upon  the 
place  and  wore  clothes  prepared  from  its  wool  and 


9o  THE  SOCIAL  MESSAGE  OF  JESUS 


woven  on  its  loom.  He  conned  his  lessons  at  the 
old  fireplace,  discussed  religion  and  politics  with 
his  brothers,  and  performed  his  part  of  the  com¬ 
mon  tasks.  His  modern  brother  has  his  attention 
directed  away  from  the  rented,  temporary  abode 
called  home  at  almost  every  turn.  Food  and  clothes 
come  from  the  town  stores.  He  studies  at  the 
school  and  worships,  if  at  all,  at  the  neighborhood 
church.  His  contact  with  industry  is  in  shop  or 
office.  The  newspaper  and  club  and  movie  again 
wean  him  from  home.  These  changes,  desirable  as 
many  of  them  are,  have  tended  to  shift  the  em¬ 
phasis  from  the  group  to  the  individual. 

The  entrance  of  women  into  industry  has  been 
an  important  factor  also.  It  is  obvious  that  home¬ 
making  cannot  be  successfully  accomplished  by  one 
who  is  seldom  in  the  home,  as  is  the  case  where 
the  mother  must  work  to  supplement  the  hus¬ 
band’s  earnings.  Again,  the  self-supporting  young 
woman  is  loath  to  give  up  her  good  income,  and  late 
marriage  often  results.  So  far  has  this  change  gone 
in  some  instances  as  to  lead  Gohre  to  remark : 
“For  a  large  part  of  the  working  population  of  our 
great  industrial  cities  (Germany)  the  traditional 
form  of  the  family  no  longer  exists.”  From  these 
and  similar  considerations  some  socialists  have  con¬ 
fidently  predicted  the  passing  of  the  family.  It, 
with  capitalism  and  religion,  are  regarded  as  form¬ 
ing  the  bulwarks  of  that  social  order  whose  over¬ 
throw  is  sought. 

So  we  find  these  various  active  enemies  of  the 
family  to-day — instability  in  the  marriage  relation, 
socialization  of  family  functions,  changed  condi¬ 
tions  in  industry,  and  the  disregard  of  some  social 


THE  FAMILY 


9* 

teachers.  To  these  might  well  be  added  a  lessen¬ 
ing  of  parental  authority,  greater  liberty  between 
the  sexes,  and  a  general  revision  of  the  ideals  of  the 
home.  A  solution  has  been  sought  in  various  ways; 
through  legislation,  through  a  revival  of  emphasis 
on  the  teachings  of  the  church,  etc.  “In  these  prac¬ 
tical  efforts  for  domestic  integrity,  however,  there 
is  in  reality  involved  a  much  larger  issue  than  at 
first  appears.  It  is,  in  fact,  nothing  less  than  an 
issue  between  two  theories  of  the  marriage  tie — 
the  conception  of  it  as  a  temporary  contract  involv¬ 
ing  the  interests  of  those  who  are  known  as  ‘the 
parties  concerned/  and  the  conception  of  it  as  a 
social  institution  involving  the  fabric  of  the  social 
order.  Indeed,  the  family  is  but  one  element  in  a 
general  struggle  for  existence  of  two  types  of  civil¬ 
ization,  one  dominated  by  an  interest  in  the  develop¬ 
ment  of  the  individual,  the  other  characterized 
by  a  concern  for  the  social  order.”2 

Gospel  ideals  of  marriage. — From  this  very 
incomplete  picture  of  the  family  let  us  turn  to  the 
gospel  and  seek  what  word  Jesus  has  on  this  sub¬ 
ject.  This  will  be  found  to  be  very  definite — much*/ 
more  so  than  in  connection  with  most  specific 
social  problems.  Matthew  records  these  words  in 
the  nineteenth  chapter,  verses  3  to  9  (Weymouth 
Version):  “Then  came  some  of  the  Pharisees  to 
Him  to  put  Him  to  the  proof  by  the  question, 

“  ‘Has  a  man  a  right  to  divorce  his  wife  when¬ 
ever  he  chooses?’ 

“  ‘Have  you  not  read/  He  replied,  ‘that  He  who 
made  them  “made  them”  from  the  beginning 

2  Peabody,  Jesus  Christ  and  the  Social  Question ,  p.  13 1.  The 
Macmillan  Company. 


92  THE  SOCIAL  MESSAGE  OF  JESUS 


“male  and  female  (Gen.  i.  27),  and  said,  For 

THIS  REASON  A  MAN  SHALL  LEAVE  HIS  FATHER  AND 
MOTHER  AND  BE  UNITED  TO  HIS  WIFE,  AND  THE  TWO 

shall  be  one”  (Gen.  ii.  24)?  Thus  they  are  no 
longer  two,  but  “one”!  What  therefore  God  has 
joined  together,  let  not  man  separate/ 

“  ‘Why  then,’  said  they,  ‘did  Moses  command 
the  husband  to  give  her  “a  written  notice  of  di¬ 
vorce,”  and  so  put  her  away  (Deut.  xxiv.  i)?’ 

“‘Moses/  He  replied,  ‘in  consideration  of  the 
hardness  of  your  nature,  permitted  you  to  put 
away  your  wives;  but  it  has  not  been  so  from  the 
beginning.  And  I  tell  you  that  whoever  divorces 
his  wife  for  any  reason  except  her  unfaithfulness, 
and  marries  another  woman,  commits  adultery/  ” 

(See  also  Mark  10:  2-12  and  Luke  16:  18.) 

These  passages  indicate  that  marriage  is  to  be 
permanent  like  other  family  relations.  The  fact 
that  it  is  entered  into  voluntarily  while  the  others 
are  not  makes  no  difference.  We  feel  that  only  an 
unnatural  father  will  disown  his  own  child  no  matter 
how  wayward  it  may  become.  The  family  ties  be¬ 
tween  parents  and  children  and  between  brothers 
and  sisters  are  not  dissolved  at  will.  This  same 
natural  permanence  is,  according  to  Christ’s  teach¬ 
ing,  to  characterize  the  relation  between  husband 
and  wife.  Divorce  is  not  to  be  considered  except, 
possibly,  for  unchastity,  and  even  this  exception 
is  not  mentioned  by  Mark  or  Luke.  The  teaching 
may  be  unwelcome,  but  it  certainly  is  not  obscure; 
one  might  feel  with  Renan  that  it  is  “overstrained 
morality,”  but  assuredly  it  is  not  equivocal. 

It  should  be  noted  that  this  teaching  does  not, 
as  is  sometimes  contended,  impose  the  burden  of 


THE  FAMILY 


93 


continuing  an  uncomfortable  and  unholy  relation¬ 
ship.  It  condemns  no  wife  to  a  life  of  misery  with 
some  selfish  wretch  of  a  husband.  It  condones  no 
continuance  of  a  wedlock  from  which  love  has 
departed.  Separation  is  possible,  but  remarriage  is 
forbidden.  A  mistake  in  such  an  important  matter 
as  this  must  needs  carry  with  it  a  heavy  burden. 
As  usual  Jesus  here  struck  at  the  very  root  of  the 
matter.  Many  a  divorce  case  would  never  have 
been  considered  except  for  the  possible  and  in  most 
cases  the  probable  remarriage.  The  Master  is  not 
simply  concerned  with  the  adjustment  of  marital 
difficulties;  he  is  striking  more  deeply  and  reaching 
the  very  source  of  many  of  these  troubles.  “It  is 
against  the  provoking  of  alienation  by  this  antici¬ 
pation  of  remarriage  that  Jesus  makes  his  special 
protest;  and  the  modern  world,  with  its  voluntary 
desertions  often  suggested  by  antecedent  and  ille¬ 
gitimate  affection,  knows  well  how  grave  a  social 
peril  it  is  with  which  Jesus  deals.”3 

The  family  held  in  high  esteem. — Turning  now 
to  the  indirect  evidence  of  other  teachings,  we  find 
that  Jesus  holds  the  family  in  such  high  esteem  that 
he  continually  uses  it  as  the  type  of  the  Kingdom. 
While  he  often  speaks  of  the  kingdom  of  heaven, 
he  does  not,  in  general,  use  the  Kingdom  imagery 
which  prevails  in  the  Old  Testament.  But  the 
family  words  “father,”  “brother,”  “sons”  are  often 
on  his  lips.  No  other  words  of  human  relationships 
so  well  express  those  which  should  exist  between 
all  men  and  between  them  and  God.  Try  to 
substitute  “boss,”  “hands,”  “superintendent,” 
“teacher,”  “pupil,”  “governor,”  “subject,”  or 

3  Peabody,  Jesus  Christ  and  the  Social  Question,  p.  154. 


94  THE  SOCIAL  MESSAGE  OF  JESUS 


“slave,”  and  see  how  inadequate  they  are.  Divine 
love  is  understandable  when  pictured  as  paternal. 
Repentance  is  illustrated  by  the  prodigal  son  when 
he  exclaims,  “I  will  arise  and  go  to  my  father.” 
“Repentance,  that  is  to  say,  is  but  the  homesickness 
of  the  soul.”  Jesus  added  brotherhood  to  the  vocab¬ 
ulary  of  religion,  and  in  trying  to  bring  heavenly 
relationships  within  the  comprehension  of  humans 
he  could  find  no  analogy  better  than  the  family. 

However,  Jesus’  idea  of  the  family  reaches  even 
a  higher  level — that  of  a  divinely  appointed  institu¬ 
tion.  “What  God  hath  joined  together,  let  not 
man  put  asunder.”  This  is  not  saying  that  all 
marriages  are  made  in  heaven — though  they  ought 
to  be.  It  is,  rather,  to  show  that  the  institution 
has  the  approval  of  God.  I  These  high  ideals  are 
surely  needed  to-day.  Their  widespread  adoption 
would  dispel  the  selfishness  and  sordidness  of 
matches  made  for  money  or  social  position.  Such 
ideals  would  check  hasty  and  ill-considered  mar¬ 
riages.  We  joke  about  Gretna  Green  and  Reno, 
“married  in  haste  and  repenting  at  leisure,”  soul 
affinities,  and  all  the  rest.  Sincere  love  for  our 
country  and  religious  zeal  alike  would  bid  us  rather 
to  weep  as  we  regard  the  implied  menace  to  home 
life.  To  follow  the  Master’s  thought  would  lift 
the  relationship  of  the  sexes  out  of  the  realm  of 
idle  jesting  and  worse.  Colored  supplements  (mis¬ 
named  comic)  that  hold  up  discord  and  strife  as 
the  usual  order  of  married  life  would  fill  us  with 
disgust  rather  than  merriment. 

It  may  be  necessary  to  recall  that  these  ideals 
are  for  members  of  the  Kingdom,  for  those  who  are 
in  accord  with  the  mind  of  Christ.  They  certainly 


THE  FAMILY 


95 


transcended  the  Mosaic  law,  and  perhaps  modern 
legislation  cannot  yet  reach  their  high  idealism. 
But  for  Christian  people  at  least  there  can  be  no 
doubt  about  standards.  Marriage  is  a  permanent 
relation;  where  separation  is  unavoidable  no  re¬ 
marriage  is  to  be  considered.  It  is  more  than  a 
personal  contract,  more  than  a  social  incident,  more 
even  than  a  social  institution.  It  is  a  divinely 
appointed  relation  and  as  such  is  to  be  sacredly 
guarded.  This  high  conception  is  well  expressed 
in  the  beautiful  and  ancient  vows  of  the  English 
Church  liturgy:  “To  have  and  to  hold  from  this 
day  forward,  for  better  for  worse,  for  richer,  for 
poorer,  in  sickness  and  in  health,  to  love  and  to 
cherish,  till  death  do  us  part,  according  to  God’s 
holy  ordinance.” 


Exercises 

1.  What  reason  do  you  have  to  suppose  that  Jesus 

would  oppose  polygamy?  Is  it  forbidden  in 
the  gospel?  Is  it  contrary  to  the  spirit  of 
the  gospel? 

2.  How  is  modern  divorce  contrary  to  Christ’s 

teaching? 

3.  Why  is  divorce  increasing?  What  will  help  most 

in  checking  it? 

4.  How  should  the  establishment  of  a  less  indi¬ 

vidualistic  social  order  affect  divorce? 

5.  Give  some  evidences  of  democracy  in  the  ordinary 

family.  Some  undemocratic  things. 

6.  What  ideals  of  Christ  are  generally  maintained 

in  American  homes?  Which  are  most  fre¬ 
quently  violated? 


96  THE  SOCIAL  MESSAGE  OF  JESUS 


7.  How  has  the  entrance  of  women  into  industry 

affected  the  home? 

8.  What  is  meant  by  “the  family  is  the  social  unit”? 

9.  Show  that  “table-talk”  has  an  educational  value. 

10.  How  does  poor  housing  affect  the  family? 

11.  Is  there  a  Housing  Commission  in  your  city? 

If  so,  what  are  its  duties? 

12.  The  home,  when  existing  in  comparative  isola¬ 

tion,  had  many  functions  which  in  the  com¬ 
plex  life  of  a  modern  city  have  been  more 
or  less  socialized.  Discuss  the  means  and 
extent  of  this  socialization  in  each  of  the 
following : 

(a)  Production  of  crops,  food  stuffs,  and 

textiles. 

( b )  Trade  and  barter. 

(1 c )  Protection  against  marauding  forces. 

( d )  Protection  against  fire. 

(e)  Prevention  and  cure  of  disease. 

(/)  Education.  General,  technical,  cultural. 
(g)  Religious  training. 

13.  Apply  the  four  tests  of  Chapter  VIII  to  the  fam¬ 

ily.  Is  it  Christian? 

Topics  for  Further  Study 

1.  The  historical  forms  of  the  family. 

2.  A  study  of  the  causes  of  divorce. 

3.  The  family  as  a  type  of  the  kingdom  of  heaven. 

4.  The  factory  and  the  home. 

5.  Ancestor  worship  and  the  family. 

6.  The  place  of  the  family  under  socialism. 

7.  The  ancient  Hebrew  patronymic  family. 

8.  Relation  of  domestic  science  to  family  ideals. 

9.  Family  life  in  the  slums. 


THE  FAMILY 


97 


Suggested  Readings 

Adler,  F.,  Marriage  and  Divorce . 

Cope,  H.  F.,  Religious  Education  in  the  Family. 
Mathews,  The  Social  Gospel ,  Chapters  IV,  V,  VI, 
XIII. 

Peabody,  Jesus  Christ  and  the  Social  Question ,  Chap¬ 
ter  III. 

Rauschenbusch,  Christianizing  the  Social  Order ,  pp. 

128-136,  262-271,  302-303. 

Small  and  Vincent,  An  Introduction  to  the  Study  of 
Society ,  Book  II,  Chapters  I  to  IV,  and  Book 
IV,  Chapters  II  and  III. 


CHAPTER  IX 


THE  SCHOOL 

The  past  two  hundred  years  have  witnessed  the 
gradual  democratization  of  the  school  in  America. 
Sir  William  Berkely,  governor  of  Virginia  in  1670, 
piously  thanked  God  that  “we  have  no  free  schools.” 
But  the  very  thing  that  he  feared  has  come  to 
pass  and  is  regarded  as  one  of  the  proudest  achieve¬ 
ments  of  our  national  life.  Education  has  become, 
in  theory  at  least,  the  heritage  of  all.  There  may  be 
an  aristocracy  of  learning,  but  entrance  to  it  is 
denied  to  none  because  of  the  accident  of  birth. 
This  democratizing  of  education,  this  offering  of 
its  privileges  to  the  humblest,  not  only  upsets  old 
ideas  of  caste,  but  constitutes  a  real  step  toward 
Christian  ideals. 

This  transformation  has  also  affected  the  cur¬ 
riculum  of  the  school.  The  marked  trend  from  the 
academic  toward  the  practical  is  in  answer  to  the 
demand  that  education  must  meet  the  needs  of 
everyday  life.  It  must  be  granted  that  mistakes 
have  been  made  in  the  readjustments.  All  too 
often  the  school,  in  its  anxiety  to  teach  folk  how  to 
earn  a  living,  has  forgotten  to  instruct  them  in  that 
vastly  more  important  thing,  how  to  live.  Some¬ 
times  the  attempt  to  make  education  practical  has 
resulted  in  its  becoming  materialistic.  We  may, 
however,  have  faith  in  the  outcome;  idealism  will 
have  its  counteracting  influence  and  education  will 

98 


THE  SCHOOL 


99 


more  and  more  nearly  realize  its  ideal  of  enabling  the 
child  to  function  in  all  directions  in  its  environment. 

There  is  still  another  indication  of  this  change 
which  has  taken  place  since  the  Cavaliers  of  Eng¬ 
land  and  America  regarded  education  as  “a  pre¬ 
requisite  of  the  secular  and  religious  aristocracy.” 
It  is  in  the  wider  social  use  being  made  of  the  school 
plants.  Parent-Teacher  Associations  meet  at  the 
schoolhouse.  Lectures,  special  classes,  discussion 
forums,  and  mothers’  clubs  enlarge  the  circle  of 
its  influence.  Evening  classes  are  provided  for 
various  groups  not  reached  by  the  regular  day 
sessions.  In  many  neighborhoods  the  schoolhouse 
is  a  true  social  center.  A  similar  extension  is  taking 
place  in  the  institutions  of  higher  learning.  Col¬ 
leges  and  universities  are  recognizing  a  respon¬ 
sibility  for  service  to  their  communities.  Able 
assistance  is  given  in  such  fields  as  economics,  civics, 
social  service,  engineering,  business  administration, 
medical  and  dental  clinics,  music,  art,  etc.  This 
service  is  rendered  through  conferences,  extension 
classes,  lectures,  membership  on  civic  boards  and 
other  direct  means. 

The  school  and  the  church. — Historically  there 
has  been  a  very  close  connection  between  the  school 
and  the  church.  The  catechetical  and  catechumenal 
schools  conducted  by  the  church  during  the  early 
centuries  of  the  Christian  era  led  in  time  to  the 
monastic  school  and  later  to  the  universities.  Dur¬ 
ing  this  time  education  was  a  definite  part  of  the 
church’s  program.  The  teachers  were  clergy  and 
the  schools  were  attached  to  the  monasteries  and 
other  church  properties.  Moreover,  the  curricula 
were  strongly  colored  by  ecclesiastical  considera- 


IOO  THE  SOCIAL  MESSAGE  OF  JESUS 


tions.  With  the  Revival  of  Learning  came  an 
increasing  secularization  of  education.  But  even 
then  the  church  maintained  a  lively  interest,  and 
particularly  through  the  establishment  and  endow¬ 
ment  of  colleges  has  played  an  important  part  up 
to  the  very  present.  This  has  been  especially  true 
in  America.  In  those  early  days  of  colonization,  and 
later  on  the  westward  moving  frontier,  the  churches 
were  always  the  friends  of  education.  They  built 
academies  and  founded  colleges,  and  out  of  their 
scanty  resources  raised  endowments.  “That  enthu¬ 
siasm  for  education,  which  is  one  of  the  finest 
characteristics  of  our  country  and  has  gone  far 
to  redeem  us  from  the  charge  of  mammonism,  was 
kindled  and  fed  by  the  churches  and  ministers,  by 
the  denominational  academies  and  colleges,  and  by 
the  men  and  women  who  were  bred  in  them.” 

Thus  there  have  been  gradually  laid  aside  certain 
old  and  unchristian  ideals  and  customs.  Class 
privilege  in  education  has  all  but  disappeared  in 
educational  circles.  Private  exploitation  of  the 
schools  for  financial  gain  has  never  been  an  out¬ 
standing  evil  and  is  a  diminishing  one  surely.  Serv¬ 
ice  is  more  and  more  the  watchword  of  the  schools, 
and  service  is  a  thoroughly  Christian  idea.  It  is 
no  mere  chance  that  on  the  frontiers  of  civilization 
the  school  and  the  chapel  stand  side  by  side,  indeed, 
often  are  housed  in  the  same  building.  The  church 
has  been  the  patron  of  education;  she  has  founded 
academies  and  colleges;  the  financial  resources  have 
been  supplied  by  her  members,  and  her  young 
people  have  filled  its  classrooms.  So  it  is  by  no 
means  strange  that  essential  Christian  ideals  should 
largely  control  in  education. 


THE  SCHOOL 


iox 


The  failure  in  religious  training.— There  is,  how¬ 
ever,  an  important  side  of  human  development 
which  has  been  almost  entirely  untouched  by  the 
organized  forces  of  education.  It  is  in  striking 
contradiction  to  the  generally  recognized  modern 
educational  principle  that  “the  whole  child  goes  to 
school.”  This  is  the  vital  point  of  moral  and  re¬ 
ligious  training,  of  spiritual  development.  Here  the 
average  school  man  has  “virtually  confessed  him¬ 
self  helpless,  a  victim  of  baffled  thought.  .  .  .  Mean¬ 
while,  who  can  aver  that  The  whole  child  goes  to 
school’  when  the  child  is  the  innocent  victim  of  a 
system  of  schooling  that  assiduously  excludes  the 
special  factor  that  makes  for  the  unfolding  of  the 
spiritual  nature?  .  .  .  Spiritual  existence  is  the  essen¬ 
tial  meaning  of  human  life.  Because  the  object 
of  life  is  growth,  because  the  ground  of  his  culture 
lies  in  his  own  nature,  because  he  possesses  the 
divine  powers  of  the  soul,  man  is  a  greater  name 
than  prince  or  king!  I  believe  a  future  generation 
of  educational  leaders  will  view  with  amazement 
the  dullness  and  slowness  of  heart  exhibited  by  our 
generation  in  stolidly  blinking  this  fundamental 
issue.  1 

It  is  amazing  that  we  can  have  been  so  short¬ 
sighted.  The  very  success  of  our  splendid  American 
school  system  is  in  danger  of  becoming  a  menace, 
for  it  is  a  daring  and  dangerous  thing  to  train  a 
generation  mentally  and  neglect  them  morally  and 
religiously.  An  educated  rascal  is  dangerous  to 
the  community  in  proportion  to  his  keenness  and 
training.  A  dishonest  dullard  soon  bungles  in  his 

1  Hunt,  “The  New  Education,"  Western  Journal  of  Education, 
June,  1916. 


io2  THE  SOCIAL  MESSAGE  OF  JESUS 


petty  crime  and  is  discovered  and  punished.  But 
couple  low  and  immoral  purposes  to  a  trained 
mind,  stored  with  knowledge,  and  a  menacing  per¬ 
sonality  is  produced  which  may  cause  untold  havoc 
in  the  social  fabric.  The  crimes  of  such  a  one  may 
reach  appalling  heights.  Even  more  serious  is  the 
fact  that  he  may  keep  inside  the  bounds  of  law  and 
for  a  time  at  least  win  popular  approval  for  his 
shrewdness.  The  plain  fact  is  that  while  we  have 
developed  such  an  admirable  system  of  secular 
education  we  have  been  exceedingly  slack  in  pro¬ 
vision  for  moral  and  religious  training.  People 
who  would  regard  illiteracy  as  an  intolerable  dis¬ 
grace  view  complacently  the  spiritual  ignorance  of 
their  children.  Communities  spend  thousands  of 
dollars  in  splendid  equipments  for  secular  educa¬ 
tion,  but  make  no  provision  for  religious  training 
other  than  the  meager  “penny”  programs  of  the 
Sunday  schools.  These  latter  at  their  best  leave 
large  sections  of  the  community  unreached.  Con¬ 
sider,  for  example,  the  relative  time  devoted  to 
religious  and  secular  training.  The  usual  school  day 
is  five  hours,  which  means  one  thousand  hours  per 
year  of  forty  weeks.  At  the  best  a  child  receives 
in  Sunday  school  fifty-two  periods  of  from  a  half 
to  three-quarters  of  an  hour  of  religious  training. 
This  is  further  reduced  by  absences  and  various 
interruptions,  so  that  it  is  doubtful  if  for  the  average 
child  there  is  more  than  twenty-five  hours  of  reli¬ 
gious  instruction  annually. 

A  recent  survey  of  a  certain  city  revealed  that 
over  eight  thousand  boys  and  girls  of  school  age 
were  receiving  no  regular  religious  instruction  of 
any  kind.  These  constituted  sixty-two  per  cent  of 


THE  SCHOOL 


103 


the  entire  population  within  the  school-age  limits. 
The  city  is  well  churched,  four  of  the  leading  churches 
having  at  the  time  the  survey  was  made  well  de¬ 
veloped  plans  of  religious  education  under  com¬ 
petent  paid  directors.  It  is  a  place  of  more  than 
average  wealth,  culture,  and  religious  vision. 
Whether  religious  training  will  be  undertaken  by 
the  public  school  may  be  still  an  open  question, 
though  the  preponderance  of  opinion  is  now  against 
it.  The  tradition  of  the  separation  of  Church  and 
State  lies  at  the  foundation  of  this  feeling,  and  is 
too  essential  an  American  doctrine  to  be  easily  set 
aside.  Indeed,  it  must  not  be  set  aside,  although 
there  certainly  is  a  reasonable  doubt  whether  public 
instruction  in  morality  and  essential  religion  would 
constitute  an  infringement  of  this  ancient  and 
honored  principle.  This  much  is  certainly  clear, 
that  some  adequate  program  of  religious  instruction 
must  be  adopted.  It  is  entirely  probable  that  it 
will  be  conducted  by  the  churches,  but  that  it  will 
be  much  more  comprehensive  than  the  present 
Sunday-school  work.  There  must  be  an  extension 
so  as  to  include  week-day  instruction,  and  some 
satisfactory  means  of  correlation  with  the  system 
of  secular  education  must  be  developed. 

The  last  two  decades  have  seen  a  growing  appre¬ 
ciation  of  the  need  of  better  religious  training. 
Great  improvement  has  taken  place  in  the  cur¬ 
riculum  material;  some  advance  has  been  made  in 
teacher  training;  higher  standards  in  methods  and 
equipment  have  been  reached.  The  most  important 
development  now  taking  place  in  religious  education 
is  found  in  the  movement  for  week-day  religious 
instruction.  It  includes  the  Daily  Vacation  Bible 


104  THE  SOCIAL  MESSAGE  OF  JESUS 


Schools,  Accredited  Bible  Study,  and  plans  for 
week-day  instruction  in  religion  by  the  churches. 
The  training  of  teachers  and  leaders  and  the  prep¬ 
aration  of  curriculum  material  are  vital  phases  of 
this  work.  The  interest  of  public  school  men  and 
their  sincere  efforts  to  fit  such  instruction  with  the 
child’s  weekly  program  are  significant. 

Making  education  Christian. — What  are  the  Chris¬ 
tian  standards  for  education?  We  shall  look  in 
vain  for  any  dierct  answer  to  this  question  in  the 
gospel.  Certain  standards  may  readily  be  deduced, 
however,  to  which  the  school  must  conform  if  it 
is  to  maintain  its  place  in  the  Kingdom  plans. 
One  of  these  has  been  referred  to  already.  Nothing 
could  be  more  thoroughly  unchristian  than  the 
old  idea  of  restricting  education  to  a  small  “upper” 
class.  Instead  of  being  an  instrument  of  service 
it  was  used  as  a  badge  of  superiority,  a  means  of 
widening  an  unrighteous  gulf.  It  is  certainly  the 
desire  of  Christ  that  all  his  brethren  should  have 
every  chance  for  betterment  and  growth.  It  is 
significant  that  every  far-sighted  missionary 
endeavor  has  at  some  point  included  instruction. 
A  century  ago  zealous  Catholic  priests  were  estab¬ 
lishing  the  chain  of  missions  along  the  Camino 
Real  in  California.  These  outposts  of  civilization 
were  centers  of  practical  education  as  well  as  of 
religious  instruction.  From  the  first,  teaching  and 
evangelism  have  occupied  places  side  by  side  in 
the  work  among  the  Indians,  and  that  plan  is  fol¬ 
lowed  now  by  workers  of  all  denominations.  Foreign 
missionaries  have  learned,  sometimes  after  bitter 
experience,  that  the  teacher  must  ground  well  the 
faith  awakened  by  the  preacher.  Wherever  the 


THE  SCHOOL 


io5 

spirit  of  Christ  has  had  full  sway  men  have  been 
anxious  to  share  their  best  with  all  their  brothers. 

Another  unchristian  tendency  with  which  educa¬ 
tion  has  had  to  contend  is  its  prostitution  to  selfish 
ends.  Mr.  Squeers,  of  Dotheboys  Hall,  may  not 
exist  to-day,  but  his  selfish  ignorance  may  still 
sometimes  be  found.  The  woman  with  little  prep¬ 
aration  and  meager  native  teaching  ability,  who 
teaches  to  earn  pin  money;  the  man  who  finds  fair 
pay  and  long  vacations  and  a  certain  standing  in 
the  community  a  sufficient  reward  for  his  hum¬ 
drum  service,  untouched  by  the  sacred  fire  of  the 
genuine  teacher;  the  medical  school  or  dental  col¬ 
lege  run  for  revenue  only — all  these  have  felt  the 
blighting  touch  of  commercialism. 

A  fine  thing  about  the  school-room  is  that  com¬ 
paratively  it  is  free  to  minister  to  the  highest  needs 
of  the  developing  life.  A  ready  and  real  test  of  its 
work  is  in  its  product.  If  the  youth  of  our  nation 
are  showing  a  spirit  of  service,  embodying  the 
highest  ideals  of  character  under  the  acid  test  of 
practical  living,  growing  out  of  selfishness  into 
altruism,  learning  the  lessons  of  race  experience 
and  expressing  them  in  terms  of  social  life,  reaching 
out  from  the  finite  to  the  infinite,  then  the  school 
is  Christian. 

Exercises 

1.  Does  the  grade  school  foster  real  social  feeling? 

2.  Are  colleges  democratic? 

3.  In  what  grade  do  children  begin  to  draw  the 

color  line  and  make  class  distinctions? 

4.  What  high-school  study  broadened  most  your 

social  outlook?  How  much  did  your  age  have 


io6  THE  SOCIAL  MESSAGE  OF  JESUS 


to  do  with  this  result?  The  teacher?  The 
rest  of  the  class? 

5.  Think  of  the  relative  value  of  various  studies. 

(a)  Arrange  the  following  subjects  in  the 

order  of  their  practical  value :  English, 
Grammar,  Latin,  geometry,  physics, 
chemistry,  history,  Spanish,  book¬ 
keeping,  arithmetic,  English  liter¬ 
ature,  physiology,  geography. 

( b )  Arrange  the  same  list  in  the  order  of 

their  value  in  developing  the  mental 
powers  of  the  individual. 

(c)  Arrange  the  same  list  in  the  order  of 

their  value  in  producing  social  out¬ 
look. 

6.  Should  religion  be  taught  in  the  public  schools? 

7.  The  ratio  of  time  spent  per  year  in  Sunday 

school  and  day  school  is  at  best  one  to  twenty. 
Is  that  enough?  How  can  it  be  increased? 

8.  Should  religious  education  be  under  the  direc¬ 

tion  of  the  local  church  or  should  it  be  a 
community  undertaking? 

9.  Give  examples  of  the  use  of  school  equipment 

for  community  betterment,  aside  from  in¬ 
struction. 

10.  Describe  some  activities  of  Parent-Teacher 

Associations. 

11.  Whom  does  the  P.  T.  A.  help  most — parents, 
teachers,  or  pupils? 

12.  When  is  education  practical? 

13.  What  should  a  trade  school  teach? 

14.  List  the  general  subjects  you  would  include  in 

a  college  course  in  engineering,  theology, 
education. 


THE  SCHOOL 


107 


Topics  for  Further  Study 

1.  The  Gary  educational  plan. 

2.  The  study  of  the  Bible  in  the  public  school. 

3.  The  function  of  the  Christian  college. 

4.  The  origin  of  some  American  university. 

5.  Social  studies  in  the  grades. 

6.  “Cash  value”  as  an  element  in  education. 

7.  College  graduates  as  social  leaders. 

Suggested  Readings 

* 

Addams,  Democracy  and  Social  Ethics ,  Chapter  VI. 
Bogardus,  Introduction  to  Sociology ,  Chapter  XI. 
Rauschenbusch,  Christianizing  the  Social  Order,  pp. 
142-147,  452-453- 

Athearn,  Religious  Education  and  American  Democ¬ 
racy,  Chapter  I. 


CHAPTER  X 


THE  STATE 

A  nation  must  have  territory,  population,  and  a 
form  of  government.  These  characteristics  dis¬ 
tinguish  it  from  those  antecedent  forms,  the  gens, 
the  patriarchal  family,  and  the  tribe.  Among 
primitive  peoples  crude  governments  were  developed 
under  the  urge  of  fear  and  for  the  sake  of  mutual 
protection  against  common  danger.  Whether  the 
danger  was  from  their  own  kind  or  from  wild  ani¬ 
mals,  it  was  a  bond  of  union  and  a  potent  force  in 
developing  leaders.  This  contest  for  power  be¬ 
tween  the  governing  group  and  other  social  groups 
furnishes  many  an  interesting  historical  chapter. 
Under  a  democracy  society  makes  the  government, 
and  certain  voluntary  organizations  may  well  exist 
and  function  socially  with  little  or  no  relation  to 
government.  On  the  other  hand,  in  an  absolute 
monarchy  government  creates  society  and  its  very 
existence  is  conditional  on  control  of  the  voluntary 
associations.  The  essential  difference  is  indicated 
by  Stukenburg  when  he  says:  “Its  (the  govern¬ 
ment)  sphere  is  that  of  collective  authority  and 
coercion;  the  sphere  of  other  societies  is  that  of 
cooperation.”  Thus  it  transpires  that  socially  our 
interest  is  in  the  third  of  the  characteristics  of  the 
nation.  If  the  state  is  an  organism  having  func- 

108 


THE  STATE 


109 


\ 


tions  and  responsibilities,  then  government  is  its 
means  of  expression. 

It  is  interesting  that  the  classification  of  govern¬ 
ments  as  monarchies,  oligarchies,  and  democracies, 
made  by  Aristotle,  anticipated  the  developments  of 
many  centuries.  This  classification  indicates  the 
place  where  the  authority  of  government  rests, 
and  with  this  authority  goes  also  obligation.  Doctor 
McDonald  said:  “Democracy  means  the  kingship 
of  the  common  people.  But  kingship  is  not  wearing 
robes  of  purple  and  crowns  of  gold.  Kingship  is 
bearing  burdens  and  facing  obligations  and  doing 
duties  and  rendering  services.  When  the  power 
of  the  king  passed  over  to  the  crowd  there  passed 
with  it  that  awful  and  inescapable  obligation,  the 
facing  of  which  made  the  king  either  martyr  or 
despot  under  the  old  regime,  and  under  the  new 
regime  runs  the  risk  of  making  the  crowd  either 
coward  or  criminal.”  It  is  this  “inescapable  obliga¬ 
tion”  which  makes  it  necessary  for  citizens  of  the 
democracy  to  understand  the  source  and  expression 
of  the  authority  of  government. 

The  functions  of  the  state. — This  power  and 
obligation  of  government  may  be  defined  by  noting 
the  functions  of  the  state.  They  have  sometimes 
been  conveniently  classified  as  constituent  and 
ministrant.  To  the  former  belong  such  activities  as 
the  defense  of  the  realm,  preservation  of  the  public 
order,  coinage  of  money,  enforcement  of  health 
laws,  etc.  Ministrant  functions  include  postal 
service,  education,  control  of  industry,  and  many 
other  things  which  conceivably  could  be  carried  on 
by  private  interests.  In  the  past  century  the 
ministrant  functions  of  government  have  been 


no  THE  SOCIAL  MESSAGE  OF  JESUS 


largely  extended.  In  fact,  much  of  the  political 
discussion  and  difference  of  opinion  of  the  day 
centers  on  the  possible  or  advisable  extension  of 
these  governmental  activities. 

Another  classification,  suggested  by  Doctor  Bo- 
gardus,  is  threefold:  (i)  Activity  with  reference  to 
other  states,  guaranteeing  protection  from  external 
attack  or  undue  interference;  (2)  activity  with 
reference  to  its  citizens,  guaranteeing  them  security 
and  liberty;  (3)  activity  in  promoting  constructive 
measures  for  group  advance.1  As  an  immediate 
consequence  of  the  first  of  these  activities,  the  de¬ 
fense  of  the  realm,  sovereign  states  are  frequently 
engaged  in  war.  Some  of  these  historical  struggles 
have  probably  been  necessary,  and  have  made  a 
certain  contribution  to  human  progress.  Many 
have  been  utterly  unjustifiable  and  wrong.  Kreh- 
biel,  in  his  careful  study,  cites  six  arguments  which 
have  been  advanced  for  war.  These  are: 

1.  War  is  inevitable. 

(a)  It  is  a  divine  institution.  “I  believe 

war  is  the  divinely  appointed  means  by 
which  the  environment  may  be  ad¬ 
justed”  (Maude,  in  War  and  the 
World’s  Life). 

(b)  History  confirms  its  inevitability.  In  the 

3,357  years  of  known  history  prior  to 
1861  there  were  3,130  years  of  war  and 
227  of  peace. 

(c)  Human  nature,  unchangeable,  makes 

war  inevitable.  “Between  states  the 
only  check  on  injustice  is  force” 
(Bernhardi). 


1  Introduction  to  Sociology ,  p.  188. 


THE  STATE 


in 


2.  War  exerts  a  wholesome  moral  influence. 

(a)  Develops  patriotism,  unselfishness,  effi¬ 

ciency,  economy,  inventiveness,  cour¬ 
age,  sense  of  social  equality. 

(b)  Preserves  physical  virility. 

( c )  Aids  progress  by  settling  differences. 

3.  War  performs  the  biological  function  of  select¬ 

ing  the  best  nation.  Prevents  overpopula¬ 
tion.  Develops  the  race  at  expense  of 
individual. 

4.  The  economic  advantage  to  the  victor.  Gain 

of  territory  or  indemnity.  Crushing  com¬ 
petition. 

5.  The  economic  value  of  giving  employment, 

teaching  trades,  etc.,  in  the  army. 

6.  Armies  are  useful  in  time  of  peace. 

A  detailed  consideration  cannot  be  attempted  here. 
As  a  national  policy  war  is  open  to  at  least  these 
two  serious  objections:  First,  it  rests  on  the  fallacy 
that  might  makes  right.  At  the  best,  force  only 
hastens  inevitable  results.  At  its  worst  it  only 
retards  them.  Second,  the  economic  folly  of  war. 
As  Norman  Angell  has  so  consistently  pointed  out, 
the  victor  is  by  no  means  always  the  gainer. 

Is  war  Christian?  Plere  again  we  have  no  direct 
gospel  teaching.  Indirectly  Christ’s  high  estimate 
of  individual  worth,  his  emphasis  on  love  as  the 
only  successful  life  motive,  his  pleas  for  race  sol¬ 
idarity,  his  exaltation  of  spiritual  values  are  all 
against  it.  Just  as  these  principles  become  operative 
in  personal  life  will  they  become  powerful  in  the 
national  life.  “National  morality  cannot  be  far 
in  advance  of  individual  morality.”  So  it  would 
seem  to  be  fundamental  to  any  consideration  of  the 


1 12  THE  SOCIAL  MESSAGE  OF  JESUS 


right  or  wrong  of  war  that  Christians  should  exam¬ 
ine  with  frankness  their  acceptance  of  Jesus’  message 
of  love  and  brotherliness  as  the  guiding  principles 
in  their  personal  relations.  When  they  accept  these 
and  practice  them  so  as  to  arrest  the  attention  of 
the  world,  there  will  be  some  hope  of  winning  the 
nations  to  the  same  program. 

Law  and  punishment. — With  reference  to  its 
internal  affairs  the  function  of  government  is  exer¬ 
cised  through  legislation.  Law  is  crystallized  public 
opinion.  As  a  constructive  and  corrective  social 
force  remedial  legislation  is  the  expression  of  what 
people  think  and  desire,  and  when  public  opinion 
is  not  back  of  it  law  ceases  to  have  power.  Remedial 
legislation  differs  from  criminal  law  in  the  objects 
of  its  enactments,  which  include  such  things  as 
sanitation,  fire  hazard,  sweat-shops,  factory  inspec¬ 
tion,  traffic  regulation,  hours  of  labor,  etc.  Not 
all  evils  can  be  cured  by  law,  few  can  be  cured 
without  law.  It  forms  one  of  the  chief  means  for 
social  control  of  individual  conduct  and  relations. 
It  follows  that  respect  for  law  and  order  is  one  of 
the  important  props  of  civilization.  Failure  at  this 
point  is  a  sign  of  social  disintegration.  When,  as 
often  happens,  a  law  no  longer  represents  public 
opinion,  it  should  be  repealed,  but  not  disregarded. 
The  best  way  to  get  rid  of  a  “dead-letter”  law  is 
to  enforce  it.  Officers  who  attempt  to  discrim¬ 
inate  and  decide  which  laws  “the  people  wish 
enforced”  are  going  outside  of  their  sphere.  The 
peace  officer’s  duty  is  to  enforce  laws  as  he  finds 
them  and  not  to  attempt  to  interpret  public  opin¬ 
ion. 

A  government  to  be  effective  must  be  able  to 


THE  STATE 


113 

enforce  its  will,  that  is,  its  laws.  To  this  end  pun¬ 
ishment  is  necessary  for  those  who  transgress  the 
laws  and  so  record  their  lack  of  harmony  with 
society  and  their  disregard  for  social  solidarity. 
The  history  of  punishment  is  an  interesting  one. 
Originally,  it  was  closely  wrapped  up  with  the  idea 
of  revenge  on  the  part  of  the  injured  person  or  his 
friends.  In  time  the  criminal  came  to  be  regarded 
not  only  as  the  foe  of  the  wronged  individual,  but 
the  enemy  of  society  as  well,  and  punishment  be¬ 
came  a  concern  of  the  whole  group.  Even  then 
retaliation  long  continued  to  be  the  underlying 
principle,  and  is  not  entirely  eliminated  even  to-day. 
It  is  a  deep-seated  human  instinct  to  want  to  get 
even  and  “an  eye  for  an  eye  and  a  tooth  for  a  tooth” 
makes  a  strong  appeal.  Early  in  the  Middle  Ages, 
under  German  influence,  the  idea  of  “compensation” 
arose  as  a  substitute  for  or  modification  of  revenge. 
By  the  payment  of  a  sum  of  money,  “ wergeld ,”  to 
the  injured  person,  or  later  on  to  the  state,  almost 
any  wrong — even  murder — could  be  atoned  for. 
Repression  has  been  recognized  as  a  basis  for  pun¬ 
ishment.  It  is  supposed  to  operate  to  prevent 
repetition  of  the  crime  and  as  a  deterrent  to  others. 
This  theory  of  suppression  of  crime  has  often  led 
to  horrible  severity  and  tortures.  There  seems 
to  be  no  doubt  that  the  value  of  repression  has 
been  largely  overestimated.  It  is  the  final  argument 
for  capital  punishment.  Revenge  and  repression 
must  jointly  bear  the  blame  for  the  hideous  history 
of  inhuman  methods  of  dealing  with  criminals. 

Beccaria,  an  Italian  writer,  is  credited  with  first 
effectively  suggesting  the  idea  of  reformation  in 
his  little  book  on  Crimes  and  Punishment ,  published 


1 14  THE  SOCIAL  MESSAGE  OF  JESUS 


in  1764.  Others  have  contributed  largely  since  then 
until  it  is  a  well-recognized  principle  to-day. 
Present-day  thought  includes  three  purposes  of 
punishment:  to  provide  a  deterrent,  to  protect 
society  by  incarcerating  those  with  criminal  ten¬ 
dencies,  and,  finally,  to  reform  the  criminal.  The 
spirit  of  Christianity  has  gradually  permeated  this 
department  of  public  life.  Such  things  as  prison 
reform,  probation,  indeterminate  sentences,  com¬ 
pensation  of  prisoners  for  work  done,  graduation 
of  penalty  to  suit  crime,  and  juvenile  courts  are 
evidences  of  the  effect  of  this  spirit. 

Some  remnants  of  class  distinction. — Some  indi¬ 
cation  has  been  given  throughout  this  chapter  of 
Christian  ideals  as  applied  to  the  state.  As  to  the 
form  which  government  should  take,  essential 
democracy  is  indicated  by  the  Christian  principles 
of  the  value  of  personality  and  the  solidarity  of 
society.  Where  these  hold  sway  there  will  not  be 
much  room  for  class  distinction  and  special  priv¬ 
ilege.  That  special  privilege  is  antagonistic  to  the 
spirit  of  Christ  few  would  care  to  deny.  The  high 
places  in  the  Kingdom  are  for  those  who  stoop  to 
lowly  tasks  of  service.  Not  only  is  Christianity 
essentially  democratic,  but  democracy  is  essentially 
Christian.  While  some  rather  long  and  rapid  steps 
have  been  recently  taken  toward  world  democracy, 
special  privilege — that  most  unchristian  attribute 
of  autocracy — dies  hard.  “Some  remnants  of  this 
inequality  still  linger  wherever  feudal  rank  sur¬ 
vives.  A  Russian  noble  and  a  moujik  who  commit 
the  same  offense  do  not  receive  the  same  punish¬ 
ment.  ...  In  Italy  two  cardinals  recently  claimed 
their  right  as  Italian  princes  to  have  their  deposition 


THE  STATE 


115 

as  witnesses  taken  in  their  own  houses  instead  of 
coming  into  a  public  court  like  common  people.”1 
At  least,  however,  in  the  United  States,  and  increas¬ 
ingly  in  many  other  countries,  the  “denial  of  equal 
rights  and  of  the  equal  humanity  of  all  is  felt  to  be 
a  backsliding  and  a  disgrace.”  The  fight  is  not 
over  and  will  not  be  as  long  as  suspicion  even 
remains  that  a  poor  man  cannot  get  even-handed 
justice  in  any  court,  or  while  “the  interests”  can 
at  all  control  elections  or  the  course  of  legislation. 

There  might  seem  to  be  little  call  for  discussion 
of  the  attitude  of  the  Christian  toward  govern¬ 
ment.  This  would  be  true  if  there  had  not  been 
some  who  seem  to  feel  absolved  from  all  political 
responsibilities  by  reason  of  their  membership  in 
the  kingdom  of  heaven.  They  take  very  literally 
the  injunction  to  come  out  and  be  separate  from  the 
world.  They  have  somehow  gained  the  idea  that 
it  is  possible  to  live  up  to  Jesus7  measure  of  disciple- 
ship  apart  from  human  society.  What  the  Christian 
attitude  should  be  is  indicated  in  the  familiar  say¬ 
ing,  “Render  therefore  unto  Caesar  the  things 
which  are  Caesar’s;  and  unto  God  the  things  that 
are  God’s.”  Fortunately,  we  are  not  dependent  on 
an  isolated  statement  such  as  this.  The  whole 
trend  of  Jesus’  teaching  indicated  acceptance  of 
social  responsibility  and  performance  of  social 
duties.  Certainly,  men  have  stood  out  against  evil 
clothed  in  civic  power,  they  have  at  times  withstood 
magistrates  vested  with  human  authority  which 
they  were  misusing.  Such  men  have  won  the 
willing  commendation  of  all  who  love  human  progress 
and  human  rights.  It  is  surely  of  equal  importance 

1  Rauschenbusch,  Christianizing  the  Social  Order ,  p.  149. 


1 16  THE  SOCIAL  MESSAGE  OF  JESUS 


to  maintain  law  when  it  is  on  the  side  of  progress 
and  right. 

Exercises 

1.  Give  an  example  of  a  special  privilege  in  mod¬ 

ern  life. 

2.  What  inequalities  of  privilege  are  recognized  in 

the  original  Constitution  of  the  United  States? 

3.  Answer  the  arguments  for  war,  namely: 

(< a )  It  is  inevitable. 

( b )  It  exerts  a  wholesome  moral  influence. 

( c )  It  selects  the  best  nation. 

(d)  Gives  economic  advantage  to  the  vic¬ 

tors. 

(e)  Provides  employment  and  teaches 

trades. 

(/)  Armies  are  useful  in  time  of  peace. 

4.  Is  it  ever  right  for  a  nation  to  begin  war? 

5.  Should  a  nation  defend  itself  against  wars  of 

aggression? 

6.  “Is  there  any  ideal  of  heroism  that  can  take  the 

place  of  those  furnished  by  war?” 

7.  What  should  be  the  attitude  of  a  Christian 

toward  voting,  office-holding,  law-keeping? 

8.  Explain:  “The  best  citizen  of  the  commonwealth 

is  he  who  gives  fullest  allegiance  to  the  King 
of  kings.” 

9.  Should  the  church  take  sides,  as  an  organiza¬ 

tion,  in  political  issues? 

10.  Give  example  of  the  wholesome  influence  of  the 

church  on  political  life. 

11.  “Should  a  statesman  be  judged  by  his  loyalty 

to  his  district,  to  his  country,  or  by  his  per¬ 
sonal  morals?” 


THE  STATE 


117 

12.  Why  did  Daniel  Webster  say,  “Whatever  makes 

men  good  Christians  makes  them  good 
citizens”? 

13.  Should  a  “dead-letter  law”  be  enforced? 

14.  Do  you  favor  capital  punishment? 

Topics  for  Further  Study 

1.  Special  privilege  in  American  legislation. 

2.  The  poor  man’s  chance  in  the  courts. 

3.  A  moral  substitute  for  war. 

4.  The  peace  time  services  of  the  army. 

5.  The  church  and  the  spirit  of  democracy. 

6.  The  history  of  suffrage  limitation  in  the  United 

States. 


Suggested  Readings 

Krehbiel,  Nationalism,  War  and  Society,  particularly 
Chapter  XVI. 

Maude,  War  and  the  World’s  Life . 

Rauschenbusch,  Christianizing  the  Social  Order,  pp. 

Bogardus,  Introduction  to  Sociology,  Chapter  VIII. 
Wines,  Punishment  and  Reformation  Chapters  III 
and  IV. 


CHAPTER  XI 


THE  SHOP  AND  THE  MART 

Industrial  life  presents  so  many  varied  aspects 
that  it  is  extremely  difficult  to  form  correct  judg¬ 
ments  concerning  it.  It  includes  simple  manual 
labor,  the  work  of  the  highly  skilled  artisan  and 
intellectual  effort  of  many  degrees.  Production 
in  mine  and  factory  and  on  farm  or  oil  field  demands 
the  constant  labor  of  multitudes.  Distribution  and 
wholesale  and  retail  trade  necessitate  another  army 
of  operatives.  Special  problems  arise,  such  as 
employment  of  women  and  children,  industrial 
accidents  and  disease,  hours  of  labor  and  the  seven- 
day  week,  unemployment,  seasonal  vocations,  strikes, 
labor  unions,  and  many  others.  Thus  men  and 
women  are  thrust  into  a  thousand  and  one  rela¬ 
tionships  through  which  the  multitudinous  opera¬ 
tions  of  industry  are  carried  on.  Some  must  employ 
and  some  must  be  employed.  Some  must  plan  and 
direct,  while  others  carry  out  the  plans.  There 
will  be  inevitable  misunderstanding  and  injustice, 
simply  because  these  are  humans  with  all  the 
limitations  which  that  implies.  But,  however 
inevitable  much  of  this  maladjustment  may  be, 
there  are  great  collective  inhumanities  from  which 
our  social  and  industrial  life  should  be  freed.  Ad¬ 
mitting,  that  is,  that  perfect  social  behavior  cannot 
be  expected,  we  may — and  must — press  on  toward 
some  great  improvements. 

118 


THE  SHOP  AND  THE  MART 


119 

In  this  brief  chapter  it  is  obvious  that  no  ex¬ 
tended  discussion  can  be  attempted.  By  consider¬ 
ing  some  of  the  outstanding  problems,  a  cross 
section  of  industrial  conditions  may  be  formed. 
To  this  end  a  few  salient  facts  will  be  presented. 
These  have  been  selected  to  bring  into  view  some 
of  the  most  unchristian  aspects,  the  places  most 
remote  from  Kingdom  ideals.  This  presentation, 
therefore,  must  not  be  construed  as  a  general  charge 
against  all  business  and  all  employed  therein.  It 
is  intended,  rather,  to  point  out  some  places  which 
demand  immediate  and  drastic  action. 

Childhood  toiling  . — Greed,  in  cowardly  fashion, 
always  attacks  those  least  able  to  care  for  them¬ 
selves,  so  it  need  occasion  no  surprise  to  find  little 
children,  women,  and  illiterate  foreigners  the  vic¬ 
tims  of  exploitation.  Child  labor  is  found  in  many 
trades  and  occupations,  the  main  ones  being,  accord¬ 
ing  to  the  United  States  census,  cotton  manu¬ 
facture,  silk  manufacture,  glass  manufacture,  mining, 
agriculture,  fruit,  vegetable  and  sea  food  canneries, 
sweated  clothing  trades  and  street  trades.  The 
census  shows  Texas  to  stand  first  in  the  number  of 
children  ten  to  fifteen  years  old  employed  in  gain¬ 
ful  occupations.  The  figures  for  1910  are  as  follows: 


Texas, 

114,000 

boys 

60,000 

girls 

Georgia, 

102,000 

boys 

60,000 

girls 

Alabama, 

94,000 

boys 

61,000 

girls 

North  Carolina, 

92,000 

boys 

53>°°° 

girls 

Mississippi, 

83,000 

boys 

55>°°° 

girls 

South  Carolina, 

66,000 

boys 

52,000 

girls 

Pennsylvania, 

64,000 

boys 

33, ooo 

girls 

All  other  States  show  lower  figures. 

The  detrimental  effects  of  child  labor  are  many 


i2o  THE  SOCIAL  MESSAGE  OF  JESUS 


and  serious,  (i)  Physical.  Growth  and  develop¬ 
ment  are  stunted  when  long  hours  are  spent  at 
tasks  too  heavy  for  the  child's  strength.  One¬ 
sided  development  is  frequent.  Unsanitary  condi¬ 
tions  and  lack  of  sufficient  nourishing  food  are 
additional  factors.  (2)  Educational.  School  days 
are  shortened  and  sometimes  cut  off  altogether,  thus 
depriving  the  child  of  the  much-needed  training. 
Work  after  school  hours  tends  to  lessen  mental 
activity  and  distract  interest,  thus  lowering  the 
efficiency  of  what  instruction  is  received.  (3)  Moral. 
Government  reports  on  women  and  child  wage- 
earners  indicate  a  tendency  toward  greater  delin¬ 
quency  among  working  children. 

The  burden  of  responsibility  for  the  existence 
of  child  labor  must  be  shared  by  several  classes. 
Actual  economic  need  lies  back  of  something  less 
than  one  third  of  the  cases,  according  to  a  Federal 
Report.1  Sickness,  death  of  a  parent,  etc.,  are 

CAUSES  OF  CHILD  LABOR 


Economic  necessity . 30  per  cent 

Help  desired,  but  not  needed . 27.9  per  cent 

Dissatisfaction  with  school . 26.6  per  cent 

Child  prefers  to  work . 9.8  per  cent 

Other  causes .  5.7  per  cent 


contributing  causes  which  bring  many  families  to 
the  point  of  partial  dependence  on  childish  earn¬ 
ing  capacity.  Then  there  is  the  greed  of  parents, 
for  the  same  report  finds  “help  desired,  but  not 
necessary,"  in  almost  another  third.  “Many  par¬ 
ents,  especially  some  immigrant  parents,  still  con¬ 
sider  their  growing  children  as  capital  or  economic 
assets  from  which  financial  returns  in  the  form  of 


1  Federal  Report  on  Women  and  Child  Wage-Earners,  vol.  vii,  p.  46. 


THE  SHOP  AND  THE  MART 


1 2 1 


wages  may  be  immediately  received.”2  Much  of 
the  responsibility  for  child  labor  must  be  laid  at 
the  door  of  the  employer.  He  often  willingly  accepts 
the  underpaid  services  of  children.  Nearly  every 
attempt  to  secure  child  labor  legislation  has  had 
its  shameful  chapter  of  opposition  from  the  employers 
in  affected  industries.  Again,  the  public,  in  its 
indifference  and  ignorance  of  the  baleful  results, 
must  accept  a  large  share  of  the  blame. 

A  hopeful  sign  is  found  in  the  increasing  amount 
of  legislation.  A  very  helpful  agency  has  been  the 
National  Child  Labor  Committee,  which  has  sup¬ 
plied  information,  stimulated  public  interest,  and 
agitated  for  legislation.  The  laws  are  in  the  main 
State  laws  providing  for  minimum  age  limits,  edu¬ 
cational  qualifications,  prohibition  of  night  work, 
and  protection  from  dangerous  trades.  While  the 
provisions  of  these  laws  vary  in  different  States, 
they  usually  establish  the  minimum  age  for  full¬ 
time  work  at  from  fourteen  to  sixteen  years,  provide 
for  schooling  at  least  through  the  grammar  grades, 
specify  certain  prohibited  industries,  and  otherwise 
guard  the  welfare  of  the  adolescent  worker. 

Women  in  industry. — More  than  eight  million 
women  and  girls  were  employed  in  gainful  occu¬ 
pations  in  1910  in  the  United  States.  That  is  to 
say,  about  one  quarter  of  all  the  women  over  ten 
years  of  age  in  the  country.  New  York  led  in 
numbers,  with  984,000.  The  proportion  of  women 
and  girls  so  employed  in  the  United  States  is  steadily 
increasing,  and  has  been  rapidly  growing  for  a 
number  of  years.  Some  of  the  more  serious  results 
may  be  noted. 

2Bogardus,  Introduction  to  Sociology ,  p.  158. 


i22  THE  SOCIAL  MESSAGE  OF  JESUS 


1.  It  frequently  means  neglect  of  the  home.  In 
1916  it  was  estimated  that  nearly  one  million  mar¬ 
ried  women  were  employed.  In  many  cases  this 
involves  neglect  of  young  children.  The  with¬ 
drawal  of  the  mother  or  wife  usually  results  in  a 
lower  standard  home. 

2.  Wages  are  affected.  Women  are  commonly 
paid  less  than  men  and  frequently  replace  them. 
In  many  industries  women  and  men  are  employed 
under  the  same  conditions  as  to  work  done  and  hours 
kept.  It  is  unusual,  however,  for  women  to  receive 
the  same  wage.  The  average  wage  for  women  in 
1900  was  only  a  little  over  half  that  paid  to  men. 
This  is  due  in  part  to  the  rapid  increase  of  women 
employed  in  industry,  thus  creating  a  supply  much 
in  excess  of  the  demand.  Then,  too,  a  large  pro¬ 
portion  of  these  women  are  unskilled  laborers  who 
receive  correspondingly  low  wages. 

3.  Detrimental  moral  and  physical  effects  often 
result.  Women  undertake  work  unsuited  to  their 
strength.  Long  hours,  involving  continuous  stand¬ 
ing,  constant  mental  tension,  unsanitary  surround¬ 
ings,  are  some  of  the  elements  involved. 

In  seeking  for  the  causes  underlying  this  startling 
increase  in  the  employment  of  women,  two  reasons 
stand  out  prominently.  The  first  of  these  is  the 
introduction  of  labor-saving  machinery.  These  tools 
have  increased  production  and  relieved  men  of 
the  heavy  tasks  of  hand  production.  The  lighter 
work  of  attending  these  automatic  or  semi-auto¬ 
matic  machines  can  be  done  at  least  as  well  by 
women,  and  in  many  cases  their  superior  dexterity 
enables  them  to  excel  men.  Thus  we  find  thousands 
of  women  operatives  in  cotton  mills,  workers  in 


THE  SHOP  AND  THE  MART 


123 


electric  manufactories,  and  in  binderies,  etc.  An¬ 
other  important  consideration  is  the  constantly 
increasing  cost  of  living,  coupled  with  the  relatively 
low  wage  paid  many  men.  In  every  recent  census 
the  average  yearly  wage  earned  by  men  has  been 
considerably  under  the  most  conservative  estimate 
of  the  necessary  family  income.  This  means  either 
substandard  living  conditions  for  the  family,  or 
the  necessity  of  augmenting  its  income  by  the  labor 
of  women  and  children. 

Some  legislation  has  been  passed  relative  to  the 
employment  of  women.  These  laws,  in  general, 
establish  an  eight-hour  day,  set  minimum  wages, 
and  limit  employment  to  certain  industries.  The 
largest  hope  for  improvement  lies  in  public  educa¬ 
tion  and  the  development  of  a  social  conscience. 
If  the  untoward  effects  on  the  home  and  the  younger 
generation  can  be  widely  realized,  one  step  at  least 
has  been  taken  toward  correction. 

Maimed  and  helpless  workers. — The  grim  toil  of 
industrial  accidents  and  occupational  diseases  is  not 
commonly  appreciated.  The  casualties  of  the 
World  War  were  numbered  in  millions,  but  the 
losses  of  peace  are  not  less  appalling.  Ten  years 
ago  one  in  every  181  of  the  population  was  killed 
or  wounded  in  an  industrial  accident  each  year. 
The  railroads  are  responsible  for  a  large  number 
of  these.  In  1907  the  report  of  the  Interstate 
Commerce  Commission  recorded  5,000  killed  and 
76,286  injured.  The  figures  of  the  last  decade,  when 
available,  will  not  probably  show  any  marked  change. 
The  appalling  thing  is  the  frequent  indifference  to 
human  life  in  comparison  with  financial  loss.  Profits 
have  nearly  always  been  put  ahead  of  human  life. 


124  THE  SOCIAL  MESSAGE  OF  JESUS 


“The  miners  say  if  a  mule  is  killed  in  the  mines, 
the  superintendent  wants  to  know  how  it  hap¬ 
pened;  if  a  man  is  killed,  they  take  him  out  of  a 
side  door.”  Manufacturing  processes,  like  some 
used  in  the  making  of  sulphur  matches,  which  result 
in  horrible  occupational  disease,  are  continued  be¬ 
cause  the  safer  substitute  involves  a  higher  cost. 
The  use  of  automatic  couplers  by  the  railway  com¬ 
panies  reduced  the  number  of  accidents  enormously, 
but  their  adoption  was  stoutly  opposed  by  the 
managers. 

Another  dark  corner  of  modern  industry  is  the 
tenement  labor.  Usually  not  coming  under  the 
supervision  of  factory  inspection  departments,  long 
hours  and  poor  pay  are  the  rule.  It  is  in  such  sur¬ 
roundings  that  the  “sweatshop”  flourishes.  “Tech¬ 
nically,  a  sweatshop  is  a  tenement  house  kitchen 
or  bedroom,  in  which  the  head  of  the  family  em¬ 
ploys  outside  persons  not  members  of  his  immediate 
family,  in  the  manufacture  of  garments  for  some 
wholesale  merchant  tailor.”  The  term  has  been 
extended  to  include  other  industries,  such  as  the 
making  of  other  clothing,  feathers,  fur,  and  arti¬ 
ficial  flowers.  It  is  also  often  applied  to  any  factory, 
laundry,  or  shop  where  hours  are  long,  pay  inade¬ 
quate,  and  surroundings  unhealthful.  Usually  the 
industry  is  one  requiring  little  or  no  machinery, 
where  piece  work  may  be  done  by  a  low-grade  type 
of  labor.  The  work  is  frequently  taken  home.  An 
investigation  in  New  York  of  204  homes  where 
such  work  was  carried  on  brought  to  light  some  of 
the  prices  paid.  For  example,  finishing  coats, 
6  cents  each;  making  babies  booties,  25  cents  per 
dozen.  Such  workers  could  earn  from  $2.50  to 


THE  SHOP  AND  THE  MART 


125 


$3.50  per  week.  A  family  consisting  of  a  mother 
and  two  children  made  feather  plumes.  Working 
for  a  day  and  a  third,  they  tied  8,613  knots  in  one 
plume  and  earned  $2.10,  which  is  at  the  rate  of  one 
cent  for  each  41  knots.  In  this  same  investigation, 
it  was  found  that  25  per  cent  of  the  workers  were 
under  10  years  of  age;  45  per  cent  were  under  14, 
and  60  per  cent  under  16  years.  Three  quarters  of 
these  families  earned  less  than  10  cents  per  hour 
as  the  total  wage  of  the  whole  group. 

It  is,  of  course,  to  be  expected  that  bad  housing 
conditions  result:  families  of  four  or  five,  with 
perhaps  a  boarder,  living  in  a  single  room.  Con¬ 
tagious  diseases  spread  with  rapidity,  and  the  whole 
moral  and  sanitary  tone  is  so  low  as  to  constitute 
a  social  menace. 

The  idolatry  of  mammonism. — These  snapshots  at 
some  of  the  dark  shadows  of  the  industrial  world 
may  serve  to  suggest  the  sources  of  its  social  black¬ 
ness.  Reduced  to  its  simplest  term,  there  is  no 
better  statement  than  six  words  spoken  by  Jesus: 
“Ye  cannot  serve  God  and  mammon.”  The  tap¬ 
root  of  business  is  profit,  and  competition  is  the 
modern  business  way  of  making  profits. 

“Thus  our  capitalistic  commerce  and  industry 
lies  alongside  of  the  home,  the  school,  the  church, 
and  the  democratized  state  as  an  unregenerate 
part  of  the  social  order,  not  based  on  freedom, 
love,  and  mutual  service,  as  they  are,  but  on  autoc¬ 
racy,  antagonism  of  interests,  and  exploitation. 
Such  a  verdict  does  not  condemn  the  moral  char¬ 
acter  of  the  men  in  business.  On  the  contrary,  it 
gives  a  remarkable  value  to  every  virtue  they 
exhibit  in  business,  for  every  act  of  honesty,  justice, 


126  THE  SOCIAL  MESSAGE  OF  JESUS 


and  kindness  is  a  triumph  over  hostile  conditions, 
a  refusal  of  Christianity  and  humanity  to  be  chilled 
by  low  temperature  or  scorched  by  the  flame  of 
high  pressure  temptation.  .  .  .  Life  is  holy.  Respect 
for  life  is  Christian.  Business,  setting  profit 
first,  has  recklessly  used  up  the  life  of  the 
workers.  .  .  .  Beauty  is  a  manifestation  of  God. 
Capitalism  is  ruthless  of  the  beauty  of  nature  if 
its  sacrifice  increases  profit.  .  .  .  These  are  the  points 
in  the  Christian  indictment  of  capitalism.  All 
these  are  summed  up  in  this  single  challenge,  that 
capitalism  has  generated  a  spirit  of  its  own  which 
is  antagonistic  to  the  spirit  of  Christianity;  a  spirit 
of  hardness  and  cruelty  that  neutralizes  the  Chris¬ 
tian  spirit  of  love;  a  spirit  that  sets  material  goods 
above  spiritual  possessions.  To  set  Things  above 
Men  is  the  really  dangerous  practical  materialism. 
To  set  Mammon  before  God  is  the  only  idolatry 
against  which  Jesus  warned  us.”1 

One  need  not  share  Professor  Rauschenbusch’s 
conviction  that  socialism  is  the  remedy  for  these 
conditions  to  agree  with  his  arraignment  of  greed 
and  selfishness.  The  debasement  of  the  individual 
and  the  shattering  of  brotherhood  were  abhorrent  to 
Jesus.  His  kingdom  is  still  far  off  while  men  strive 
in  selfish  forgetfulness  and  put  the  things  of  sense 
above  those  of  spirit. 

“As  He  went  out  to  resume  His  Journey,  there 
came  a  man  running  up  to  Him,  who  knelt  at  His 
feet  and  asked, 

“  ‘Good  Rabbi,  what  am  I  to  do  in  order  to  in¬ 
herit  the  Life  of  the  Ages?’  .  .  . 


1  Rauschenbusch,  Christianizing  the  Social  Order ,  pp.  313-315. 


THE  SHOP  AND  THE  MART 


127 


“Then  Jesus  looked  at  him  and  loved  him,  and 
said, 

“  ‘One  thing  is  lacking  in  you:  go,  sell  all  you 
possess  and  give  the  proceeds  to  the  poor,  and  you 
shall  have  riches  in  Heaven;  and  come  and  be  a 
follower  of  mine.’ 

“At  these  words  his  brow  darkened,  and  he  went 
away  sad;  for  he  was  possessed  of  great  wealth. 

“Then  looking  around  on  His  disciples,  Jesus  said, 

“  ‘With  how  hard  a  struggle  will  the  possessors 
of  riches  enter  the  Kingdom  of  God!’ 

“The  disciples  were  amazed  at  His  words.  Jesus, 
however,  said  again, 

“  ‘Children,  how  hard  a  struggle  is  it  for  those 
who  trust  in  riches  to  enter  the  Kingdom  of  God! 
It  is  easier  for  a  camel  to  go  through  the  eye  of 
a  needle  than  for  a  rich  man  to  enter  the  Kingdom 
of  God.’  ”2 

Exercises 

1.  Name  the  most  serious  industrial  problem  in 

your  city. 

2.  What  is  the  age  limit  for  child  labor  in  your 

State? 

3.  Give  first-hand  impressions  of  child  labor.  Of 

women  in  industry. 

4.  What  is  a  sweatshop?  What  industries  are 

carried  on  in  them? 

5.  Give  some  causes  for  child  labor. 

6.  Why  is  the  accident  rate  for  children  in  industry 

higher  than  for  adults? 

7.  Give  arguments  for  and  against  a  minimum 

wage. 

2  Mark  10: 17-25,  Weymouth  Version  New  Testament. 


128  THE  SOCIAL  MESSAGE  OF  JESUS 


8.  What  is  industrial  insurance? 

9.  Can  you  find  any  warrant  in  the  gospel  for 

objecting  to  (a)  child  labor,  ( b )  a  twelve-hour 
day,  (c)  use  of  unguarded  machinery? 

10.  When  is  competition  unchristian? 

11.  Explain:  “Whenever  life  is  set  above  profit  in 

business,  there  is  a  thrill  of  admiration  which 
indicates  that  something  unusual  has  been 
done.” 

12.  Is  our  economic  system  a  friend  to  beauty? 

13.  Would  it  be  easier  to  live  a  Christian  life  under 

socialism  than  under  capitalism? 

14.  Which  is  worse,  a  twelve-hour  day  and  a  six- 

day  week,  or  an  eight-hour  day  and  a  seven- 
day  week? 

Topics  for  Further  Study 

1.  The  federal  child-labor  law. 

2.  Children  and  the  sea-food  industries. 

3.  Industrial  insurance  in  the  United  States. 

4.  Minimum-wage  legislation. 

5.  Sweated  industries. 

6.  Christ’s  attitude  toward  wealth. 

7.  Influence  of  industry  on  the  church. 

Suggested  Readings 

Bulletins  of  the  National  Child  Labor  Committee. 
Rauschenbusch,  Christianizing  the  Social  Order ,  Part 
3,  Chapters  III- VII;  Part  4,  Chapters  I- VII. 
Christianity  and  the  Social  Crisis ,  pp.  276-279. 
Stelzle,  American  Social  and  Religious  Conditions , 
Chapter  IV. 

Ward,  The  Social  Creed  of  the  Churches ,  particularly 
Chapters  II,  III,  IV,  and  IX. 


CHAPTER  XII 


PLAY 

Play  has  emerged  from  a  place  of  neglect,  or 
even  repression,  to  one  of  importance  as  a  social 
factor.  This  change  has  been  marked  by  several 
new  attitudes.  Time  was  when  play  was  thought 
of  as  a  relatively  harmless,  but  useless,  juvenile 
activity.  It  served  to  occupy  children  who  were 
too  young  for  anything  useful.  So  it  was  held  by 
some  that  play  was  the  expression  of  the  surplus 
energy  of  the  child.  Another  explanation  offered 
was  the  so-called  recapitulation  theory  which  sup¬ 
posed  that  in  his  play  the  child  was  repeating  the 
history  of  the  race  in  its  past  stages.  Thus  he 
passes  through  the  various  phases  of  savagery  and 
barbarism,  and  later  reaches  in  team  plays  the 
cooperation  of  civilization.  This  is  really  but  a 
special  application  of  the  general  theory  of  the 
child’s  development,  which,  while  having  some 
merit,  may  easily  be  pressed  too  far. 

More  recently  play  is  being  defined  as  a  prepara¬ 
tion  for  life.  Muscles  are  strengthened,  nerves 
trained,  and  coordination  of  action  developed. 
“In  playing  with  a  spool,  that  is,  in  rolling  and 
catching  a  spool,  a  kitten  is  getting  ready  for  catch¬ 
ing  mice.  The  kitten  is  thereby  developing  claw 
and  eye  coordination  that  in  a  short  time  will  be 
necessary  for  procuring  food.”  In  a  similar  way 
the  doll  plays  of  the  girl  prepare  for  motherhood, 

129 


i3o  THE  SOCIAL  MESSAGE  OF  JESUS 


and  the  more  active  plays  of  the  small  boy  look 
forward  to  the  strenuous  business  of  the  workaday 
world.  It  naturally  follows  that  play  is  becoming 
recognized  as  an  important  factor  in  education. 
“It  is  not  something  that  a  child  likes  to  have;  it 
is  something  that  he  must  have  if  he  is  ever  to  grow 
up.”  Training  through  play  has  social  as  well  as 
individual  values.  Through  it  the  growing  child 
learns  how  to  live  with  others,  discovers  the  value 
of  cooperation,  and  gains  respect  for  law  through 
regard  for  the  rules  of  the  game.  It  is  true,  indeed, 
that  the  battles  of  England  have  been  won  on  the 
playgrounds  of  her  schools. 

New  attitudes  toward  play. — A  new  relation  has 
been  established  between  play  and  education.  “All 
work  and  no  play  makes  Jack  a  dull  boy,”  was 
an  accurate  representation  of  the  schoolmaster’s 
opinion.  Play  was  valuable  only  as  a  relaxation 
from  the  serious  work  of  education.  Froebel  and 
Pestalozzi  and  Gross  have  helped  us  to  realize 
that  play  is  an  integral  and  vital  part  of  the  edu¬ 
cational  process.  From  kindergarten  to  university 
recreation  has  been  made  part  of  the  program. 
Not  only,  then,  has  the  value  of  play  in  the  develop¬ 
ment  of  childhood  been  established,  but  it  is  dis¬ 
covered  to  be  more  than  a  juvenile  activity.  The 
way  in  which  the  adult  works,  depends  much  on  how 
he  plays.  “Civilization,”  says  Frederic  C.  Howe, 
“depends  largely  on  the  way  the  people  use  their 
leisure,”  and  Percy  MacKaye,  in  the  Civic  Theater, 
says  that  the  use  of  a  nation’s  leisure  is  a  test  of 
its  civilization.  Recreation  becomes,  therefore,  a 
matter  of  community  interest.  It  is  an  important 
life  function  at  all  ages. 


PLAY 


131 

An  important  factor  in  this  new  attitude  toward 
adult  recreation  is  found  in  the  changed  conditions 
of  labor.  Our  grandfathers  divided  their  day  into 
two  parts — twelve  hours  of  labor  and  twelve  hours 
at  home.  To-day  there  are  three  periods  of  eight 
hours  each,  one  for  work,  one  for  sleep,  and  the 
third  for  leisure.  But  this  change,  due  to  the  short¬ 
ened  day,  is  not  the  only  one  which  changed  methods 
in  industry  have  produced.  The  old-fashioned 
homes,  with  their  yards  and  porches,  have  given 
way  to  flats  and  apartments.  With  the  passing  of 
the  old-fashioned  home  have  gone  also  the  old- 
fashioned  pleasures.  The  increased  leisure  is  not 
spent  in  the  home,  but  on  the  streets,  in  the  city 
parks,  and  at  various  public  amusements.  Then, 
too,  there  is  to  be  considered  the  effect  of  our  mod- 
ren  high-pressure  industrial  life.  Men  as  well  as 
machines  are  speeded  up  under  the  demands  of 
increased  production.  This  strain  upon  the  nerves 
of  working  people  has  resulted  in  an  increased  need 
for  recreation.  The  permanent  place  of  recreation 
in  industry  is  further  evidenced  by  the  widespread 
vacation  habit.  A  period  of  from  one  week  to  a 
month,  frequently  with  pay,  is  regarded  as  part 
of  the  normal  arrangement  in  many  occupations. 
The  week-end  or  Sunday  trip  to  beach,  mountain, 
or  lakeside  is  also  a  fixture  in  many  lives. 

Another  interesting  evidence  of  a  changed  esti¬ 
mate  of  the  value  of  play  may  be  noted  in  crim¬ 
inology.  As  the  idea  of  reformation  has  growingly 
controlled  the  methods  of  dealing  with  lawbreakers, 
recreation  has  found  a  place  in  the  prison  routine. 
Baseball  grounds,  moving  pictures,  and  libraries  have 
come  to  be  part  of  the  prison  equipment.  A  needed 


132  THE  SOCIAL  MESSAGE  OF  JESUS 


extension  of  this  principle  is  to  many  of  the  city 
and  county  jails.  Persons,  some  of  them  innocent 
of  any  offense,  but  merely  awaiting  trial,  are  con¬ 
fined  in  these  jails  for  periods  from  a  few  days  to 
many  months,  and  usually  with  no  recreational  facili¬ 
ties.  The  detrimental  effect  of  such  a  period  on  the 
physical,  mental,  and  moral  well-being  may  easily  be 
imagined. 

Play  and  the  church.— Perhaps  nowhere  has  the 
new  valuation  of  recreation  as  a  vital  life  factor 
been  more  marked  than  in  the  church.  The  stern 
repression  of  colonial  days  has  come  down  to  us  in 
a  word,  “puritanical,”  which  often  misleads  us  in 
our  estimate  of  the  sturdy  virtues  of  those  olden 
times.  Puritan  and  Quaker  alike,  in  turning  against 
all  too  evident  excesses  and  dangers  of  pleasure, 
missed  also  the  value  and  need  of  real  recreation. 
Some  remnants  of  this  attitude  remain  in  repressive 
regulations  to  be  found  in  certain  communions. 
In  general,  however,  the  church  is  learning  to  use 
amusements  rather  than  to  try  vainly  to  eliminate 
them.  Modern  religious  education  has  a  very 
definite  place  in  its  program  for  recreation  and 
social  life.  Gymnasiums,  playgrounds,  boys  and 
girls’  clubs,  inter-Sunday-school  baseball  leagues, 
social  occasions,  moving  pictures,  recreation  camps, 
game  rooms,  lectures  and  concerts  are  among  the 
recreational  facilities  of  the  church.  This  under¬ 
standing  attitude  in  relation  to  play  is  made  clear 
by  many  writers  on  religious  education.  Professor 
George  A.  Coe  says:  “Just  as  the  gap  between  the 
school  and  play  is  being  filled  up,  so  the  home  and 
church  should  now  at  last  awake  to  the  divine 
significance  of  the  play  instinct  and  make  use  of 


PLAY 


133 


it  for  the  purpose  of  developing  the  spiritual  nature. 
The  opposition  between  the  play  spirit  and  the 
religious  spirit  is  not  real,  but  only  fancied.  .  .  . 
We  teach  children  to  think  of  their  most  free  and 
spontaneous  activities — their  plays — as  having  no 
affinity  for  religion,  and  then  we  wonder  why  reli¬ 
gion  does  not  seem  more  attractive  to  them  as  they 
grow  toward  maturity!”1 

Commercialized  play. — The  outstanding  recrea¬ 
tional  problem  is,  of  course,  that  of  commercialized 
amusements.  “ Pleasure  resorts  run  for  profit  are 
always  edging  toward  the  forbidden.”  A  survey  of 
the  places  where  commercial  recreation  is  offered 
in  a  single  state2  revealed  thirty-four  types,  includ¬ 
ing  theaters,  pool  rooms,  ball  parks,  boat-houses, 
dance  halls,  mountain  resorts,  etc.  Under  these 
thirty-four  heads  were  reported  9,826  places,  includ¬ 
ing  4,596  saloons,  the  largest  single  item;  1,400 
pool  and  billiard  rooms;  and  others  in  varying 
numbers  down  to  nine  riding  academies.  Sixteen 
classifications,  including  about  7,800  of  the  indi¬ 
vidual  amusement  places,  were  of  types  involving 
more  or  less  definite  moral  hazard.  Leaving  out  the 
saloons,  since  eliminated  entirely  by  the  prohibition 
act,  this  means  that  over  one-half  of  these  public 
amusements  were  likely  to  be  found  “edging  toward 
the  forbidden.” 

An  investigation  in  New  York  city  showed  that 
more  than  forty  per  cent  of  the  pupils  of  the  grade 
schools  learn  to  dance  in  the  commercial  dance 
academy  or  public  dance  hall,  and  that  a  large 

1  Coe,  Education  in  Religion  and  Morals ,  p.  144. 

2  Report  of  the  Recreational  Inquiry  Committee  of  the  State  of  Cali¬ 
fornia. 


i34  THE  SOCIAL  MESSAGE  OF  JESUS 


proportion  of  these  young  people  continue  to  fre¬ 
quent  these  places.  “In  the  better  class  dancing 
academies  no  liquor  is  sold,  considerable  super¬ 
vision  is  exercised  over  the  character  of  the  persons 
allowed,  and  ‘tough  dancing*  is  prohibited.  But  in 
the  academies  of  a  lower  type  less  supervision  is 
exercised,  and  men  and  women  of  questionable  char¬ 
acter  are  present.  .  .  .  The  dance  hall  is  different  in 
many  ways  from  the  dancing  academy.  It  varies  in 
nature  from  a  great  public  place  to  ‘the  back  room 
of  the  saloon,  in  which  couples  sit  around  at  tables, 
and  from  time  to  time  rise  and  whirl  to  the  music 
of  an  unpleasant  piano.*  .  .  .  The  California  Report 
states  that  of  all  recreations,  public  dance  halls 
bear  the  most  direct  and  immediate  relation  to  the 
morals  of  their  patrons.  It  is  further  known  that 
this  influence,  as  at  present  exerted,  is  extremely 
destructive.**1 

In  visiting  an  amusement  park  such  as  is  found 
at  many  seaside  resorts,  one  is  struck  by  the  paucity 
of  ideas  for  amusement.  The  changes  are  rung  on 
a  few  well-worn  types  of  entertainment.  Games  of 
chance,  roller  coasters,  merry-go-rounds,  crazy- 
houses,  lunch  counters,  movie  shows,  and  dancing 
pavilion  nearly  complete  the  list.  Certainly,  com¬ 
plete  mental  relaxation  should  be  easily  found. 
Rested  nerves  and  moral  tone  are  quite  another 
matter,  however.  This  suggests  the  distinction  be¬ 
tween  amusement  and  recreation.  Amusement  is 
passive;  it  is  the  part  of  the  spectator;  it  aims  to 
divert,  to  while  away  the  time,  to  provide  change 
and  excitement.  Recreation  is  re-creation,  its  pur¬ 
pose  is  to  renew  strength,  to  refresh.  It  depends 


1  Bogardus,  Introduction  to  Sociology ,  p.  121. 


PLAY 


i3S 


more  on  inward  resource.  The  two  are  not  mutually 
exclusive,  neither  does  one  necessarily  include  the 
other.  There  is  no  real  recreation  in  many  amuse¬ 
ments.  It  is  nothing  less  than  tragic  that  so  many 
folks  seem  so  dependent  on  external  sources  of 
amusement,  are  so  lacking  in  inner  resources.  It 
gives  evidence  of  untrained  and  shallow  souls. 

Socialized  play. — Over  against  the  great  mass  of 
commercialized  amusements  may  be  placed  an 
increasing  number  of  socialized  means  for  play. 
With  the  growing  recognition  of  their  social  value 
has  come  an  enlarging  social  conscience.  One 
valuable  social  agency  is  the  playground,  which 
movement  began  to  attain  prominence  about  1900. 
By  1913,  2,400  playgrounds  had  been  established 
in  342  American  cities,  with  more  than  6,000  paid 
supervisors  and  workers.  Some  of  the  play  prob¬ 
lems  are: 

1.  To  keep  a  proper  balance  between  the  two 
parts  of  play,  recreation  and  amusement. 

2.  To  direct  the  children’s  play  without  loss  of 
spontaneity. 

3.  To  provide  playgrounds  and  other  uncom¬ 
mercial  recreation  facilities  for  all  elements  of  the 
population. 

4.  To  regulate  commercialized  amusements. 

5.  The  development  of  home  recreation  so  far  as 
possible. 

The  socialization  of  the  schoolhouse  has  been 
referred  to  in  another  chapter.  Neighborhood  Asso¬ 
ciations,  Parent-Teacher  Associations,  and  similar 
organizations  are  constantly  growing  in  number 
and  in  the  value  of  their  community  service.  The 
Men’s  Clubs  of  some  churches  have  cooperated. 


136  THE  SOCIAL  MESSAGE  OF  JESUS 


Altogether  hundreds  of  such  social  centers  exist 
in  schools,  churches,  women’s  club  houses,  social 
settlements,  and  even  a  few  specially  constructed 
buildings.  Where  these  are  used  as  recreation  cen¬ 
ters  they  are  by  no  means  confined  to  the  lighter 
forms  of  play.  Games,  gymnastics,  plays,  and 
moving  pictures  are,  of  course,  included.  There 
are  also  to  be  found  study  classes,  clubs  for  civic 
improvement  and  other  means  of  providing  recrea¬ 
tion  of  a  little  different  nature,  but  equally  valu¬ 
able. 

Ward  makes  the  following  suggestions  of  activ¬ 
ities  in  connection  with  the  recreation  center: 

1.  Its  advantages  should  not  be  limited  to  the 
poorer  section  of  the  city. 

2.  Each  school  building  used  as  a  recreation  cen¬ 
ter  to  have  a  large  electric  sign. 

3.  Glee  clubs  and  choral  societies  should  be 
organized  under  proper  musical  direction. 

4.  At  least  once  or  twice  a  week  mothers’  clubs 
should  meet  in  the  cooking-room  of  the  school  and 
very  practical  lessons  in  plain  cooking  and  economic 
housekeeping  be  given. 

5.  Classes  in  simple  sewing. 

6.  Nurses  could  give  practical  lessons. 

7.  Civil  service  classes  for  those  wishing  to  join 
the  fire  and  police  forces  should  be  organized. 

He  then  adds,  “  Theodore  Roosevelt  recently  said 
of  the  playgrounds:  ‘They  are  the  greatest  civic 
achievement  the  world  has  ever  known.’  Recreation 
centers  are  really  the  playgrounds  of  our  adults. 
Effectively  equipped  and  wisely  directed,  they  can 
be  made  of  the  highest  value  in  the  conservation  of 
the  youth  of  our  city,  who  are  to  be  the  citizens  of 


PLAY 


i37 


the  future  and  upon  whose  training  and  patriotism 
the  welfare  of  our  country  depends.”1 

Pageantry  has  come  to  occupy  an  important 
place  in  community  recreation.  It  stimulates  a 
spirit  of  cooperation  for  the  common  welfare,  fre¬ 
quently  develops  latent  talent,  and  brings  into 
pleasant  and  productive  comradeship  those  who 
would  otherwise  not  know  each  other.  When  the 
pageant  deals  with  local  history,  as  is  often  the 
case,  a  healthful  community  pride  is  developed. 
Three  types  of  pageant  have  been  evolved  in  Amer¬ 
ica.  First,  the  parade  of  emblematic  floats  and 
marching  companies.  Second,  an  out-of-doors  per¬ 
formance.  This  is  what  is  commonly  understood  by 
the  term  “pageant.”  It  has  been  very  extensively 
developed  and  presents  an  almost  unlimited  oppor¬ 
tunity  for  action  and  spectacle.  The  third  form  is 
the  indoor  entertainment,  which  differs  from  the 
second  only  in  limitations  of  space  and  setting. 
“The  real  pageant  is  given  out  of  doors,  its  spec¬ 
tators  number  thousands,  genuine  distance  gives  its 
beauty  to  the  production,  the  stage  is  as  vast  as 
the  eye  can  reach,  and  the  production  aims  to 
reproduce  actuality  rather  than  illusion.” 

The  activities  of  the  neighborhood  center  are 
found  to  include  the  following: 

Civic  activities.  The  public  forum,  new  citizens 
receptions,  public  discussions  and  lecture. 

Educational  activities.  Exhibition,  lectures,  art 
exhibits,  classes. 

Entertainment  activities .  Dramatics,  moving  pic- 


1  Ward,  The  Social  Center ,  pp.  268,  270.  D.  Appleton  &  Com¬ 
pany,  publishers. 


138  THE  SOCIAL  MESSAGE  OF  JESUS 


tures,  singing,  lectures,  stunt  night,  dancing,  com¬ 
munity  singing. 

Recreational  and  physical  activities.  Gymnastics, 
games,  folk  dancing,  athletics,  indoor  games  such  as 
chess  and  checkers,  bowling. 

Neighborhood  service  activities.  Clinic  for  mothers 
and  babies,  library  and  reading  room,  educational 
guidance,  handicraft  instruction. 

The  church  is  also  making  its  contribution  toward 
socialized  recreation.  The  possibility  of  its  doing 
so  is  found  in  the  changed  attitude  toward  recreation 
already  referred  to,  and  this  in  turn  roots  back 
into  the  understanding  that  mirth  and  play  are 
not  foreign  to  the  spirit  of  Jesus.  Still  more  than 
that,  they  are  coming  to  be  recognized  as  essential 
to  a  well-rounded  Christian  character.  This  means 
that  such  play  as  contributes  to  truer  manhood,  to 
healthier  living  and  to  better  thinking  is  the  right 
and  duty  of  every  Christian.  With  the  recognition 
of  this  character  building  importance  of  recreation, 
two  changes  have  come  in  the  attitude  of  the  church. 
One  is  the  passing  of  many  ancient  restrictions,  the 
unfettering  of  the  spirit  of  play.  The  other  is  the 
definite  inclusion  of  recreation  as  one  field  in  which 
the  church  should  render  its  ministrations. 

Constructively,  the  church  is  proceeding  in  accord 
with  this  spirit  of  whole  person  living.  It  is  recog¬ 
nizing  the  place  of  play  in  the  program  of  religious 
education  and  making  use  of  these  spontaneous 
activities  of  childhood  to  enliven  interest  in  in¬ 
struction.  It  sees  that  it  has  a  real  duty  to  provide 
wholesome  amusement  for  its  young  people.  It  co¬ 
operates  with  playgrounds  and  other  community 
enterprises. 


PLAY 


i39 


Exercises 

1.  How  do  the  amusements  of  to-day  differ  from 

those  of  our  grandfathers? 

2.  Should  moving  pictures  be  censored? 

3.  What  socialized  amusements  are  there  in  your 

neighborhood? 

4.  What  commercialized  amusements  are  there  in 

your  neighborhood? 

5.  Has  the  spirit  of  play  lessened  the  effectiveness 

of  school  discipline? 

6.  Why  did  the  Puritans  object  to  amusements? 

7.  Should  the  church  legislate  against  specific 

amusements? 

8.  What  recreation  equipment  would  you  provide 

in  an  ideal  church  building? 

9.  How  does  recreation  differ  from  amusement? 

10.  What  proportion  of  one’s  leisure  should  be  given 

to  recreation?  to  amusement? 

11.  How  does  the  neglect  of  recreation  warp  one’s 

development? 

12.  Do  college  athletics  contribute  helpfully  to  a 

student’s  life? 

13.  What  is  the  greatest  contribution  of  the  moving 

picture?  Its  greatest  drawback? 

14.  Has  your  community  a  recreation  center?  If 

so,  what  activities  are  carried  on  there? 

Topics  for  Further  Study 

1.  History  of  the  playground  movement. 

2.  Censorship  of  moving  pictures. 

3.  Home  recreation. 

4.  Inter-collegiate  athletics. 

5.  The  Boy  Scout  movement. 

6.  Pageantry  and  community  play. 


I40  THE  SOCIAL  MESSAGE  OF  JESUS 

Suggested  Readings 

Bates  and  Orr,  Pageants  and  Pageantry ,  Introduc¬ 
tion.  Meredith,  Pageantry  and  Dramatics  in  Re¬ 
ligious  Education. 

Bogardus,  Introduction  to  Sociology ,  Chapter  V. 

California  Report  of  the  Recreational  Inquiry  Com¬ 
mittee. 

Community  Recreation ,  published  by  the  Playground 
and  Recreation  Association  of  America. 

Ward,  The  Social  Center ,  Chapters  XII,  XIII,  XIV, 
and  XV. 

Whitaker,  The  Gospel  at  Work  in  Modern  Life ,  Chap¬ 
ter  XI. 

Richardson,  The  Church  at  Play. 


PART  THREE 


THE  CHALLENGE  TO  THE  CHURCH 

The  passing  centuries  have  fronted  the  church  with 
many  problems.  None  of  these  situations  have  been 
more  challenging  than  the  present  changing  social  order. 
How  will  the  church  meet  this  challenge  which  is  also  its 
chance?  The  answer  to  that  question  is  of  vast  import¬ 
ance  both  to  the  social  order  and  to  the  church.  Intel¬ 
ligent,  forward-looking  leadership  is  imperative.  Can  and 
will  the  church  supply  that  leadership?  Mere  good  in¬ 
tentions  will  not  suffice. 

It  will  not  be  possible  in  these  closing  chapters  to  even 
outline  a  social  program  for  the  church,  much  less  discuss 
it  in  detail.  Certain  directions  of  effort  are,  however, 
plainly  indicated,  and  these  may  be  suggested.  Above 
all,  the  note  of  hope  should  be  sounded.  There  are  signs 
that  constitute  veritable  “Channel  Buoys  of  Progress.” 


CHAPTER  XIII 


A  SPIRITUAL  BASIS  FOR  SOCIAL 

IDEALS 

When  the  Master  said  to  Peter  and  Andrew, 
“Come  ye  after  me  and  I  will  make  you  to  become 
fishers  of  men,”  the  record  adds  that  straightway 
they  left  all  and  followed  him.  The  promptness  of 
their  decision  marks  them  as  unusual  men,  for  it 
is  always  hard  to  estimate  correctly  spiritual  values. 
They  decided  promptly  and  correctly  between  the 
ideals  proffered  them  by  a  wandering  and  obscure 
teacher  and  the  easily  appreciated  worth  of  the 
good  business  which  they  so  suddenly  forsook. 
To  give  due  weight  to  the  intangible  and  unseen 
is  never  easy  in  the  presence  of  the  evident  and 
material.  The  schoolboy  who  weighs  the  probable 
value  of  a  college  education  against  the  present 
prospect  of  a  job;  the  politician  who  hesitates  be¬ 
tween  the  vagueness  of  an  approving  conscience 
and  the  power  and  profits  of  an  unrighteous  course; 
the  Christian  who  underestimates  the  power  of 
prayer — each  of  these  is  encountering  this  prob¬ 
lem. 

Doubt  of  spiritual  values. — The  times  in  which 
we  live  have  been  more  than  doubtful  of  the  value 
of  the  spiritual  life.  Of  material  prosperity  there 
has  been  much,  and  men  have  been  satisfied  by 
it.  They  have  had  no  unsatisfied  soul-hunger.  It 
is  even  more  tragic  that  those  who  have  lacked 

i43 


i44  THE  SOCIAL  MESSAGE  OF  JESUS 


in  abundance  of  possessions  have  supposed  that  to 
be  their  only  lack.  They  too  have  had  no  soul- 
hunger.  It  is  in  such  a  spirit  that  much  of  the 
struggle  for  social  justice  has  gone  on.  Too  often 
injustice  and  wrong  have  bulked  less  large  than  the 
results  of  such  attitudes.  Here,  again,  it  is  the 
failure  to  estimate  correctly  the  intangible  and 
invisible  values.  It  is  not  easy  always  to  remem¬ 
ber  that  hunger  and  squalor  and  ignorance,  and 
even  vice,  are  less  serious  than  the  unsocial  and 
unchristian  spirit  which  makes  possible  these  con¬ 
ditions.  When  we  do  get  the  true  perspective  in 
these  things,  we  will  pity  the  man  with  the  starved 
soul  who  is  content  to  fatten  his  body  on  the  rents 
of  a  tenement  house  even  more  than  we  will  pity 
the  tenant  with  the  undernourished  body. 

Even  if  some  social  philosophy  could  be  devised 
and  put  into  operation  which  would  remove  all  the 
inequalities  and  injustices  and  put  the  material 
world  to  rights,  there  would  still  be  needed  a  return 
to  spiritual  life  to  save  from  barrenness.  It  is  with 
these  things  in  mind  that  we  will  proceed  to  con¬ 
sider  some  of  the  implications  of  a  spiritual  basis 
for  social  ideals. 

A  sound  foundation  needed. — A  spiritual  basis  is 
essential  to  successful  social  reform.  “A  man  is 
standing  on  the  top  of  one  of  the  giant  Skyscrapers’ 
of  New  York  viewing  that  great  city.  He  turns  to 
a  companion  and  asks,  ‘If  you  wanted  to  make 
this  city  a  city  of  God  and  establish  the  kingdom 
of  God  here,  what  would  you  do?’ 

“The  companion  answers,  after  a  moment’s 
thought:  ‘I  would  clean  up  those  tenements;  I 
would  reduce  street-car  fares,  to  relieve  that  tene- 


SPIRITUAL  BASIS  FOR  SOCIAL  IDEALS  145 


ment  congestion,  and  let  those  laborers  live  in  the 
country.  I  would  raise  the  wages  of  working  girls. 
I  would  wipe  out  the  vice  districts,  and  drive  out 
the  grafting  and  corrupt  politicians.  I  would  Amer¬ 
icanize  those  foreigners.  I  would  prosecute  every 
one  who  preyed  upon  the  poor.  I  would  tear  down 
those  Fifth  Avenue  palaces,  open  only  a  month  or 
two  in  a  year,  and  make  playgrounds  for  the  chil¬ 
dren.  I  would  have  cleaner  streets  and  better 
sanitation.  I  would  give  every  man  a  fair  chance, 
and  then  I  should  have  a  city  of  God.’ 

“  T  doubt  it/  replies  the  first  speaker,  Tor  if 
you  didn’t  clean  up  the  hearts  of  those  people,  you 
would  probably  have  as  much  of  hell  as  before, 
notwithstanding  your  improved  conditions.  Most  of 
that  suffering  is  caused  by  the  sin  and  selfishness 
within  men.’  ”* 

This  thought  has  already  been  emphasized  in 
the  chapters  on  “The  Worth  of  a  Man”  and  “A  New 
Dynamic.”  Mere  rearrangement  of  outer  circum¬ 
stances  will  not  do.  There  must  also  be  a  cleaning 
up  of  the  spirits  of  men.  It  takes  sound  individuals 
to  build  a  sound  social  order. 

Contentment  rests  not  on  things. — Contentment 
needs  a  spiritual  basis.  The  inadequacy  of  the 
materialistic  basis  for  contentment  is  everywhere 
evident.  Those  who  have  are  just  as  unhappy, 
though  from  different  causes,  perhaps,  as  those 
that  have  not.  All  the  philosophers  have  insisted 
that  one’s  attitude  toward  life  is  the  really  im¬ 
portant  thing.  There  is  a  certain  type  of  motor- 
minded  man  immersed  in  a  sea  of  “practical”  things 
who  scoffs  at  the  idealist.  In  the  long  run,  however, 


1  Holmes,  Jesus  and  the  Young  Man  of  To-day ,  pp.  13,  14. 


146  THE  SOCIAL  MESSAGE  OF  JESUS 


idealism  comes  out  ahead.  Some  one  has  said  that 
there  are  two  ways  to  be  contented.  One  is  to  have 
what  you  want,  the  other  is  to  want  what  you  have. 
This  does  not  indicate  a  spineless  acceptance  of 
circumstances,  a  mere  clodlike  attitude  toward  life. 
It  is,  rather,  the  spirit  of  Henry  van  Dyke’s  well- 
known  words,  “to  be  content  with  my  possessions, 
but  not  satisfied  with  myself  until  I  have  made 
the  most  of  them.”  Such  a  spiritual  basis  for  con¬ 
tentment  is  in  a  measure  independent  of  the  lack 
of  material  comforts;  it  is  even  proof  against  their 
possession. 

For  the  spiritual  life,  like  the  intellectual  life 
and  the  cultural  life,  diverts  attention  and  activity 
from  primitive,  antisocial  interests  to  acquired  inter¬ 
ests  that  are  socializing. 

Our  primitive,  animal,  untaught  interests  are  in¬ 
terests  of  hunger  and  passion  and  of  savage  strife; 
and  if  we  devote  our  attentions  and  activities  to 
these,  and  these  alone,  we  inevitably  clash  with  one 
another,  and  social  chaos  must  result.  But,  as 
Professor  Ross  wittily,  though  almost  irreverently, 
says,  the  exerciser  of  dogs  in  training  would  be 
wise  not  to  throw  them  a  bone,  but,  rather,  to  set 
them  baying  the  moon,  for  there  might  not  be  bone 
enough  to  go  around,  whereas  there  would  be  plenty 
of  moon  for  all.  So  with  the  higher  intellectual 
culture  and  spiritual  interests  of  man.  Attention 
and  activity  devoted  to  them  seldom  breed  dis¬ 
agreements  or  generate  friction.  Just  to  the  degree 
that  we  occupy  ourselves  with  these  higher  inter¬ 
ests,  to  that  degree  does  social  order  develop.  And 
of  all  these  acquired  socializing  interests  to  which 
men  may  devote  their  attention,  and  from  which 


SPIRITUAL  BASIS  FOR  SOCIAL  IDEALS  147 


they  may  secure  happiness,  the  religious  interests 
are  most  cheaply  produced  and  distributed  among 
the  common  people.  It  requires  tremendous  effort 
and  capital  to  distribute  widely  all  the  products 
of  science,  philosophy,  literature  and  art;  but  men 
pray  instinctively,  the  religious  life  is  spontaneous, 
and  a  revival  can  sweep  through  a  whole  popula¬ 
tion,  redirecting  the  energies  of  the  masses  as  nothing 
else  can  do.”1 

This  is  by  no  means  an  ascetic  attempt  to  elim¬ 
inate  the  physical  from  our  scheme  of  living.  It 
is,  rather,  an  attempt  to  restore  some  higher  values 
to  their  proper  place,  to  suggest  that  living  is  fully 
as  important  as  earning  a  living,  that  the  power 
of  spirit  is  great  enough  to  bring  joy  and  satisfac¬ 
tion  and  contentment  in  spite  of  any  kind  of  cir¬ 
cumstances.  Yet,  as  we  shall  immediately  con¬ 
sider,  this  does  not  imply  at  all  satisfaction  with 
circumstances  that  are  wrong.  It  is  a  vastly  differ¬ 
ent  thing  to  be  contented  of  mind  in  the  midst  of 
our  environment,  and  to  be  contented  with  that 
environment.  So,  we  move  at  once  to  the  second 
implication,  namely: 

A  reservoir  of  power. — The  spiritual  life  lays  hold 
on  power.  It  is  not  a  mere  anodyne,  something  to 
keep  the  minds  of  people  occupied  so  that  they 
might  forget  their  misery.  If  this  were  true,  the 
strictures  of  some  social  leaders  on  religion  and 
the  church  would  be  true.  In  fact,  the  Christian 
life  not  only  furnishes  high  ideals  and  fine  examples 
of  living,  it  also  supplies  the  needed  dynamic. 

This  positive  socializing  power  is  manifested  in 
the  linking-up  of  religious  life  and  emotions  to  social 

1  Finney,  Personal  Religion  and  the  Social  Awakening ,  p.  90. 


i48  THE  SOCIAL  MESSAGE  OF  JESUS 


ideals  and  activities.  “Thus  men  are  motivated  to 
lives  of  spontaneous  and  positive  goodness.”  In¬ 
numerable  examples  might  be  cited  of  the  social 
power  of  religious  idealism.  Unfortunately,  this 
power  has  been  directed  sometimes  into  fanatical 
and  useless  channels.  It  is  hard,  for  example,  to 
find  warrant  for  the  suffering  and  death  of  the 
little  children  led  out  of  France  and  Germany  in 
the  Children’s  Crusades.  But  the  power  of  ideals 
is  undoubted,  and  may  be  harnessed  to  useful 
ends. 

It  is  certainly  no  mere  accident  that  the  finest 
Christian  idealism  exists  side  by  side  with  the  high¬ 
est  social  living.  There  is  significance  in  the  inex¬ 
tricable  mingling  of  the  Renaissance  and  the  Refor¬ 
mation,  in  the  religious  fervor  of  many  anti-slavery 
leaders,  in  the  close  cooperation  of  the  church  and 
the  prohibition  forces.  The  church  has  stood  on 
all  frontiers,  intellectual  as  well  as  physical,  of 
civilization;  and  by  the  same  token  the  pioneer 
spirit  that  led  men  to  dare  the  dangers  of  untrod 
paths  around  the  world  was  often  one  with  the 
spirit  of  missionary  zeal.  It  will  not  do  to  forget 
that  our  forefathers  planted  the  seeds  of  liberty  in 
this  land  under  the  urge  of  religious  idealism. 

The  doubt  has  been  often  expressed  whether  a 
zeal  for  the  social  interpretations  of  the  gospel 
might  not  minimize  the  personal  message.  As  some 
one  put  it,  “Salvation,  not  soap  and  soup,  is  the 
concern  of  the  church.”  Such  a  view  indicates  a 
wrong  conception  of  the  ends  of  personal  salvation 
as  well  as  of  the  fundamentals  of  social  salvation. 
Men  are  not  saved  simply  to  free  them  from  a  just 
retribution.  They  are  “saved  to  serve,”  and  service 


SPIRITUAL  BASIS  FOR  SOCIAL  IDEALS  149 


according  to  the  teaching  of  Jesus  is  defined  in 
terms  of  neighborliness  and  “cups  of  cold  water.” 
On  the  other  hand,  as  already  indicated,  no  social 
reform  can  hope  to  succeed  except  as  it  lays  hold 
on  power  through  realized  ideals.  Is  it  not  clear, 
then,  that  the  hope  of  the  world  is  in  the  ideals  of 
Jesus — the  finest  ever  set  before  humanity?  “This 
is  one  of  the  lessons  of  the  Cross:  righteousness  and 
love  and  the  effort  to  give  justice  involve  men  in 
struggle  and  loss  and  suffering.  Jesus  did  not  call 
men  to  any  easier  life  that  he  himself  lived.  Who¬ 
ever  followed  him  was  to  take  up  his  cross  and  fol¬ 
low  the  Master  as  he  carried  his.  And  the  same  call 
comes  to  the  Christians  of  to-day.  True,  we  do  not 
have  to  face  the  rack,  and  gallows,  and  the  stake; 
but  there  are  other  things  that  a  man  must  face 
who  would  attempt  to  put  the  principles  of  Jesus 
into  social  life.  He  must  face  misunderstanding, 
misrepresentation,  envy,  slander.  Sometimes  he 
must  face  financial  loss,  and  even  ruin,  as  well  as 
loss  of  friendships.  But  the  call  to  such  heroic 
self-sacrifice  is  always  to  be  heard.  The  disciple 
of  the  Son  of  man  must,  like  his  Master,  seek  to 
minister,  not  to  be  ministered  unto.  Thus  only 
can  he  live  out  that  real  life  which  it  is  the  mission 
of  the  gospel  to  beget  within  him.”1 

In  the  last  analysis  the  program  of  the  kingdom 
of  God  is  one  of  social  betterment,  to  be  established 
by  winning  individuals  to  allegiance  to  Jesus  Christ. 
Has  ever  a  stronger  evangelistic  appeal  been  made? 
The  call  to  interest  in  the  social  interpretation  of 
the  gospel  is  a  call  for  personal  consecration.  It 
is  a  call  for  clean  personal  living.  It  is  a  call  to 


1  Mathews,  The  Social  Gospel ,  pp.  162,  163. 


i5o  THE  SOCIAL  MESSAGE  OF  JESUS 


unfeigned  acceptance  of  the  mastery  of  the  Christ 
in  personal  and  social  life. 

Exercises 

1.  Give  some  evidences  that  the  present  age  is 

“skeptical  of  spiritual  life.” 

2.  What  ideals  (not  necessarily  religious)  are 

operating  powerfully  in  America  to-day? 

3.  What  does  Eucken  mean  by  saying  that  we  need 

more  “depth  of  life”? 

4.  Name  some  great  political  movements  under¬ 

taken  under  the  urge  of  a  great  ideal.  Some 
religious  movements.  Some  social  move¬ 
ments. 

5.  What  is  essential  to  contentment  of  mind? 

6.  Name  some  primitive  instincts.  Are  they  social 

or  anti-social? 

7.  Name  some  acquired  interests  and  contrast  them 

with  the  primitive  as  to  social  qualities. 

8.  Name  some  of  civilization’s  frontiers  where  the 

church  has  been  found. 

9.  Is  there  any  antagonism  between  the  idea  of 

personal  religion  and  that  of  the  social  gospel? 

10.  Give  some  evidences  of  the  barrenness  of  a 
materialistic  life. 

Topics  for  Further  Study 

1.  The  idealism  of  the  crusades. 

2.  A  review  of  Rudolph  Eucken’s  “Back  to  Re¬ 

ligion.” 

3.. Invisible  powers  in  the  inner  life. 

4.  The  idealism  of  the  labor  movement. 

5.  The  church  on  the  world’s  frontiers. 


SPIRITUAL  BASIS  FOR  SOCIAL  IDEALS  15 1 


Suggested  Readings 

Finney,  Personal  Religion  and  the  Social  Awaken¬ 
ing ,  particularly  Chapters  IV  and  V. 

Jenks,  Social  Significance  of  the  Teachings  of  Jesus , 
Study  XI. 

Mathews,  The  Social  Gospel ,  Chapter  XX. 
Rauschenbusch,  Christianizing  the  Social  Order , 
Part  6,  Chapter  VI. 


CHAPTER  XIV 


THE  CHALLENGE  TO  THE  CHURCH 

“  Never  in  human  history  were  so  many  people, 
rich  and  poor,  learned  and  ignorant,  wise  and 
otherwise,  concerning  themselves  with  social  amelio¬ 
ration,  dedicating  themselves  to  philanthropy,  organ¬ 
izing  for  industrial  change,  or  applying  the  motives 
of  religion  to  the  problems  of  modern  life.”  The 
passing  of  a  score  of  years  since  Professor  Peabody 
first  penned  these  words  has  in  no  way  lessened 
their  truth.  This  interest  is  concerned  with  a 
situation  in  social  life  which  constitutes  a  sharp 
challenge  to  the  church.  It  is  a  situation  which 
cannot  be  overlooked  and  a  challenge  which  can 
by  no  means  be  ignored.  This  challenge  to  the 
church  is  evidenced,  in  the  first  place,  by  the  present 
critical  conditions.  Consider  these  quotations  from 
different  writers  in  a  single  number  of  the  Survey: 

“Revolution  is  the  vital  fact  of  European  politics 
to-day.” 

“At  a  time  when  the  old  ‘Liberal’  and  ‘Radical’ 
and  ‘Progressive’  parties  of  Europe  have  abdicated 
or  been  thrust  aside,  labor  stands  almost  alone  in 
its  consciousness  of  large  issues  and  insistent  on  its 
rightful  share  in  deciding  them.” 

“Unemployment  is  on  the  increase  practically  all 
over  the  United  States,  though  the  situation  is  not 
yet  critical.” 

“Labor  cannot  longer  be  regarded  as  a  com- 

152 


THE  CHALLENGE  TO  THE  CHURCH  153 


modity,  like  rubber  or  cheat,  which  can  be  stored 
on  the  shelf  or  in  the  bin  in  slack  season  for  times 
of  great  demand.” 

These  could  be  multiplied  a  hundred  times  and 
yet  fall  short  of  the  whole  truth.  Human  beings  all 
about  us  are  in  dire  need.  The  pressure  of  social 
maladjustment  rests  heavily,  and  most  heavily 
upon  those  least  able  to  bear  it. 

The  three-fold  challenge. — As  danger  is  always  a 
trumpet  call  to  gallant  souls,  so  human  need  is  a 
challenge  to  the  church.  The  Master  said,  “Come 
unto  me,  all  ye  that  labor  and  are  heavy  laden, 
and  I  will  give  you  rest.”  The  church  should  inter¬ 
pret  that  message  in  terms  of  everyday  life.  If  it 
is  here  to  minister  and  not  merely  “theologize,”  it 
will  seek  to  give  this  wonderful  invitation  to  all 
who  are  burdened.  It  ought  to  be  pretty  clear 
that  Jesus’  way  of  bringing  rest  to  men  is  through 
the  ministry  of  his  followers.  Read  again  Matthew 
25:  14-46  and  Luke  9:  12-17.  It  *s  his  power,  but 
ministered  through  human  hands.  The  charge  is 
sometimes  made  that  the  church  is  more .  concerned 
with  imposing  a  way  of  thinking  upon  men  than  it 
is  with  helping  them  in  their  life  problems;  more 
careful  of  dogma  than  of  duty.  Its  surest  answer 
to  such  a  charge  is  in  meeting  this  challenge  of 
need  with  a  program  of  help. 

There  could  be,  however,  no  hope  of  such  an 
answer  were  it  not  for  the  second  fact  to  be  noticed 
as  proof  of  the  challenge.  This  fact  is  that  the 
gospel  does  have  a  message  of  brotherhood  and  good 
will  for  just  such  times  as  these.  The  tree  of  life 
does  indeed  have  leaves  for  the  healing  of  the  na¬ 
tions.  What  is  to  be  said,  however,  of  the  church 


i54  THE  SOCIAL  MESSAGE  OF  JESUS 


if,  having  the  life-giving  message,  she  shall  fail  to 
make  it  known?  The  very  possession  of  such  a 
priceless  word  imposes  a  trust  and  constitutes  a 
challenge.  In  the  preceding  chapters  the  terms  of 
this  message  have  been  examined  in  some  detail 
and  need  not  be  restated  now.  It  is  a  message 
of  peace  and  hope,  resting  on  the  personal  loy¬ 
alty  of  individuals  to  Christ  and  functioning 
through  their  social  living.  It  is  a  comprehensive 
message  touching  life  at  every  point.  The  pos¬ 
session  of  such  a  word  challenges  the  church  as  noth¬ 
ing  else  can. 

Again  the  church  is  challenged  by  a  very  evident 
disposition  to  ignore  it  as  a  social  agency.  This 
distrust  on  the  part  of  social  leaders  has  been 
frequently  expressed.  At  a  meeting  of  social 
workers  a  certain  piece  of  work  was  reported  as 
“well  done  in  spite  of  its  having  been  done  by  the 
church.”  It  is  no  uncommon  thing  for  a  group  of 
working  men  to  cheer  the  name  of  Christ  and  jeer 
at  the  church,  which  they  feel  fails  to  carry  out  his 
teachings. 

Because  of  the  moral  quality  of  the  social  ques¬ 
tion,  an  intimate  connection  might  be  expected 
between  the  church  and  social  progress;  but,  while 
such  a  connection  does  exist,  it  is  by  no  means 
as  close  as  it  should  be.  The  attitude  of  social 
workers  toward  the  church  varies  all  the  way  from 
violent  opposition  to  cordial  cooperation.  Many 
view  the  church  with  distrust  and  agree  with  Pastor 
Nauman,  who  says,  “Social  democracy  turns  against 
Christ  and  the  church  because  it  sees  in  them 
only  the  means  of  providing  religious  foundation  for 
the  existing  economic  order.”  Or  they  feel  with 


THE  CHALLENGE  TO  THE  CHURCH  155 


Liebknecht  that  “Christianity  is  the  religion  of 
property  and  the  respectable  classes.”  Bebel  goes 
even  farther  and  regards  both  the  church  and 
Christianity  as  merely  a  passing  phase.  He  says, 
“Christianity,  then,  the  prevailing  spiritual  expres¬ 
sion  of  the  present  economic  order,  must  pass  away 
as  a  better  social  order  arrives.”  His  social  philos¬ 
ophy  not  only  ignores  Christianity,  but  offers  a 
substitute  for  it.  Professor  Peabody  sums  up  the 
situation  with  these  words:  “We  find,  then,  a  gulf 
of  alienation  and  misinterpretation  lying  between 
the  social  movement  and  the  Christian  religion — 
a  gulf  so  wide  and  deep  as  to  recall  the  judgment 
of  Schopenhauer  that  Christianity  in  its  real  attitude 
toward  the  world  is  absolutely  remote  from  the 
spirit  of  the  modern  age.  Yet,  from  the  time  when 
the  social  question  began  to  take  its  present  form, 
there  have  not  failed  to  be  heard  a  series  of  protests 
against  this  alienation  of  the  new  movement  from 
the  organization  of  the  Christian  life.  To  anyone, 
indeed,  who  has  once  recognized  the  ethical  quality 
of  the  modern  social  question,  the  interpretation 
of  it  in  terms  of  sheer  philosophical  materialism 
must  appear  a  perversion  of  its  characteristic  aim, 
which  can  have  occurred  only  through  an  unfor¬ 
tunate  historical  accident;  what  reason  has  the 
Christian  Church  for  existing,  many  persons  are 
now  asking,  if  it  is  not  to  have  a  part  in  that  shap¬ 
ing  of  a  better  world,  which  at  the  same  time  is  the 
aim  of  the  social  movement?”1 

The  misunderstood  church. — Then,  too,  it  is 
difficult  for  us  here  in  America  to  understand  just 

1  Jesus  Christ  and  the  Social  Question ,  p.  20.  The  Macmillan 
Company. 


1 56  THE  SOCIAL  MESSAGE  OF  JESUS 


what  the  word  “church”  conveys  to  many  foreign 
people  of  the  working  class.  A  report  of  the  Federal 
Council  of  Churches  of  Christ  in  America  makes 
this  so  clear  that  a  portion  of  it  may  well  be  quoted 
here. 

“The  churches  of  America  are  not  supported 
even  in  part  by  state  funds,  nor  are  they  under 
state  control.  When  one  looks  at  government 
here,  the  church  is  not  of  necessity  in  the  line  of 
vision.  There  is  no  ecclesiastical  factor  in  one’s 
tax  bill.  Functionaries  of  a  religious  establishment 
do  not  sit,  as  such,  in  our  Legislatures,  and  political 
vested  rights  do  not  control  parochial  policy.  The 
churches  are  dependent  upon  the  free  will  of  the 
people,  not  upon  the  pleasure  of  the  government, 
and  policies  of  restraint  or  direction  enacted  into 
law  and  administered  by  the  courts  cannot  be 
credited  to  or  charged  against  the  body  of  Chris¬ 
tians  as  in  the  lands  of  established  churches. 

“This  distinction,  so  familiar  to  American  free¬ 
men,  requires  the  constant  renewal  of  emphasis, 
since  no  small  part  of  the  misunderstanding  con¬ 
cerning  the  church’s  relation  to  industrial  life  in 
our  country  springs  from  the  fact  that  multitudes 
born  under  the  shadow  of  an  ecclesiastical  estab¬ 
lishment,  in  this  their  new  home  impute  to  the 
American  churches  the  power,  the  prejudices,  and 
the  defects  of  an  ecclesiastical  system  here,  by  an 
impregnable  constitutional  provision,  forever  ex¬ 
cluded.”2 

The  man  who  has  seen  aristocratic  misrule  walk¬ 
ing  hand  in  hand  with  irreligious  professional 

2  The  Church  and  Modern  Industry ,  a  report  adopted  by  the  Fed¬ 
eral  Council  in  1908. 


THE  CHALLENGE  TO  THE  CHURCH  157 


ecclesiasticism  finds  it  hard  to  understand  our  kind 
of  a  church  or  to  believe  that  Christianity  has  any¬ 
thing  for  him.  On  the  other  hand,  part  of  this 
estrangement  must  rest  upon  the  members  of  the 
church.  They  have  often  been  ignorant  and  unin¬ 
terested  in  the  problems  of  social  welfare.  There 
has  not  always  been  keenness  of  vision  to  see  that 
a  great  historic  struggle  is  going  on.  The  importance 
of  individual  salvation  has  been  so  stressed  in  the 
teachings  and  evangelism  of  the  past  that  it  has 
been  hard  for  some  to  realize  that  the  gospel  had 
any  other  message. 

These  individualists  sometimes  insist  that  the 
concern  of  the  church  is  with  salvation,  and  not 
with  asoap  and  soup.”  They  would  limit  all  its 
activities  to  personal  evangelism,  with  perhaps  a 
little  instruction  along  very  conventional  lines  about 
the  duty  of  righteous  living.  A  selfish  evangelistic 
appeal  has  been  responsible  for  much  of  the  lack 
of  social  vision  in  the  church.  Its  message  has  been 
sounded  in  such  phrases  as:  “Step  over  the  line  and 
be  free,”  “Get  into  the  ark  of  safety,”  “Get  right 
with  God,”  “Prepare  for  the  other  world.”  That 
the  personal  relationship  between  the  individual  and 
God  must  be  right  is  fundamental,  and  there  can  be 
no  departure  from  this  great  evangel.  It  is,  however, 
equally  fundamental  that  the  saved  individual  must 
live  a  saved  life;  that  heart  changes  shall  find  ex¬ 
pression  in  social  activities. 

It  must  be  confessed  that  the  social  ignorance  of 
church  members  has  frequently  operated  to  widen 
this  gulf.  A  well-known  bishop,  in  a  Lenten  address 
some  years  ago,  proclaimed  himself  a  student  of 
socialism  and  a  friend  of  social  progress.  He  then 


158  THE  SOCIAL  MESSAGE  OF  JESUS 


proceeded  to  give  a  definition  of  socialism  which 
betrayed  gross  ignorance  of  its  most  fundamental 
propositions.  Winston  ChurchilPs  picture  of  the 
church  in  The  Inside  of  the  Cup  may  be  overdrawn 
and  not  true  of  any  single  church.  It  cannot  be 
denied,  on  the  other  hand,  that  he  has  pointed  out 
real  faults  and  places  of  failure. 

The  value  of  criticism. — Now,  however  unjust  we 
may  feel  some  of  these  criticisms  of  the  church  to 
be,  we  cannot  deny  their  existence,  and  that  they 
indicate  on  the  part  of  their  authors  an  antag- 
v  onistic  attitude  toward  the  church.  However, 
criticism  is  never  an  unmixed  evil.  When  just, 
it  is  to  be  taken  in  a  spirit  of  humility  as  a  stepping- 
stone  toward  correction  and  improvement.  If,  on 
the  other  hand,  it  lacks  real  foundation,  it  may  at 
least  indicate  misunderstanding  and  lack  of  appre¬ 
ciation.  This  just  as  surely  calls  for  some  change 
of  method  that  shall  lead  to  understanding  and 
appreciation.  An  unjust  accusation  may  be  most 
potent  to  provoke  defense.  If  the  church  has  a 
good  record  in  social  service,  a  vital,  present  interest, 
and  a  forward-looking  purpose,  then  let  her  con¬ 
vince  her  critics  by  strong  action.  It  is  not  the  first 
time  that  circumstances  have  challenged  the  church, 
and  we  may  have  full  faith  that  once  again  she  will 
respond  with  the  vigor  and  enthusiasm  that  shall 
compel  final  success. 

The  church’s  existence  threatened. — There  is  still 
another  aspect  to  this  matter.  The  forces  of  evil 
are  so  strongly  at  work  in  the  world  that,  unopposed, 
they  threaten  the  very  existence  of  Christian  insti¬ 
tutions  themselves.  The  church  is  fighting  for  life. 
“Thik  is  the  stake  of  the  church  in  the  social  crises. 


THE  CHALLENGE  TO  THE  CHURCH  159 


If  one  vast  domain  of  life  is  dominated  by  prin¬ 
ciples  antagonistic  to  the  ethics  of  Christianity,  it 
will  inculcate  habits  and  generate  ideas  which  will 
undermine  the  law  of  Christ  in  all  other  domains  of 
life  and  even  deny  the  theoretical  validity  of  it.  If 
the  church  has  not  faith  enough  in  its  Christian  law 
to  assert  its  sovereignty  over  all  relations  of  society, 
men  will  deny  that  it  is  a  good  and  practical  law 
at  all.  If  the  church  cannot  conquer  business, 
business  will  conquer  the  church.”3 

These  words  of  Professor  Rauschenbusch  were 
written  only  fifteen  years  ago.  In  that  short  time 
they  have  been  fulfilled  in  part  so  startlingly  as  to 
command  our  serious  thought  concerning  the  final 
outcome.  The  line  between  the  ideals  of  Chris¬ 
tianity  and  those  antagonistic  to  it  are  sharply 
drawn.  The  church  stands  as  always  for  unselfish 
living  and  spiritual  sensitiveness.  Over  against 
that  there  are  great  organized  sections  of  our  business 
world  committed  to  selfish  and  materialistic  gain; 
there  are  other  agencies  frankly  promoting  amuse¬ 
ment  and  pleasure  as  the  summum  bonurn ;  there 
are  influential  philosophies  of  life  that  are  ego¬ 
centric.  It  may  not  be  true  that  the  whole  world 
is  “money-mad”  and  “pleasure-crazed,”  but  those 
phrases  do  characterize  so  large  a  section  of  society 
as  to  give  us  pause.  In  the  light  of  passing  events 
the  church  should  clearly  and  promptly  claim 
sovereignty  over  all  relations  of  society. 

The  verity  of  this  challenge  to  the  church  lies 
in  the  nature  of  the  church.  If  it  is  but  a  human 
institution  expressing  the  longings  of  religious 
instincts,  a  place  for  groping  on  toward  God  in  a 


3  Christianity  and  the  Social  Crisis ,  pp.  341,  342. 


160  THE  SOCIAL  MESSAGE  OF  JESUS 


blind  sort  of  way,  a  workshop  for  forging  out  theolog¬ 
ical  theories,  then  the  challenge  will  fall  mostly  on 
deaf  ears.  If,  however,  the  church  is  the  repository 
of  divine  truth,  the  guardian  of  God’s  message  of 
good-will  toward  men,  a  fortress  for  the  forces  of 
righteousness,  then,  indeed,  it  will  be  a  trumpet 
call  to  battle.  It  need  occasion  no  great  surprise, 
however,  if  history  be  repeated  and  some  good 
Christians  fail  to  understand  the  challenge.  The 
same  has  been  true  in  other  emergencies.  Sermons 
were  preached  from  Scripture  texts  in  defense  of 
slavery.  A  united  and  aroused  church  could  have 
ended  the  temperance  fight  a  decade  ago.  A  move¬ 
ment  so  entirely  along  orthodox  lines  (though  of 
vast  social  significance  also)  as  modern  missions, 
even  now  in  the  day  of  its  success,  wins  but  a  tardy 
and  insufficient  support  from  many.  An  outstand¬ 
ing  duty  of  those  who  have  caught  this  social  vision 
is  to  spread  the  message,  to  rouse  the  indifferent, 
to  educate  the  ignorant.  As  in  all  such  crises,  lack 
of  knowledge  and  apathy  are  the  twin  enemies 
of  progress.  These  must  be  overcome  and  the 
challenge  to  the  church  made  clear  in  the  mind  of 
each  of  its  faithful  members.  As  the  fiery  cross 
swept  over  Scotland,  and  set  the  most  remote 
clansman  hurrying  to  Clan  Alpine’s  aid,  so  may 
there  be  a  rallying  to  the  support  of  the  church  and 
its  Master’s  cause. 


Exercises 

i.  Do  you  think  that  more  persons  are  applying 
motives  of  religion  to  the  problems  of  modern 
life  than  ever  before?  Give  reasons  for  your 
answer. 


THE  CHALLENGE  TO  THE  CHURCH  161 


2.  Give  circumstances  which  you  have  noticed 

that  indicate  the  present  critical  social  con¬ 
dition. 

3.  What  evidence  do  you  see  that  church  people 

are  aware  of  the  crisis  and  its  challenge?  Is 
such  awareness  increasing? 

4.  What  did  Jesus  mean  when  he  called  his  fol¬ 

lowers  the  salt  of  the  earth? 

5.  Has  the  church  had  a  preserving  effect  on  com¬ 

munities? 

6.  Give  an  example  of  a  social  task  which  has 

been  well  done  by  the  church. 

7.  Give  an  example  of  a  failure  to  function  socially 

by  the  church. 

8.  Why  is  the  church  often  regarded  as  controlled 

by  unsocial  forces?  Is  it  a  just  charge? 

9.  If  the  leadership  of  Jesus  fails  to  change  society, 

what  hope  do  you  see? 

10.  Compare  the  efficiency  of  the  church  with  that 

of  other  social  institutions. 

11.  Has  the  social  viewpoint  ever  been  presented 

in  a  Sunday-school  class  of  which  you  were 
a  member?  If  so,  how? 

12.  Are  the  criticisms  of  the  church  for  unsocial 

attitude  deserved? 

Topics  for  Further  Study 

1.  The  social  impulses  in  the  gospel. 

2.  The  reasons  for  distrust  of  the  church  by  social 

workers. 

3.  The  ethical  content  of  socialism. 

4.  A  review  of  The  Inside  of  the  Cup. 

5.  The  stake  of  the  church  in  the  social  crisis. 


162  THE  SOCIAL  MESSAGE  OF  JESUS 


Suggested  Readings 
Mathews,  The  Social  Gospel . 

Peabody,  Jesus  Christ  and  the  Social  Question , 
Chapter  I. 

Rauschenbusch,  Christianizing  the  Social  Order ,  pp. 
136-142. 


CHAPTER  XV 


THE  CHANCE  OF  THE  CHURCH 

Not  only  is  the  church  meeting  a  challenge;  it 
is  offered  a  chance.  If  it  will  see  the  vision  and 
accept  the  responsibility,  the  church  may  become 
leader  in  this  great  reconstruction  period.  The 
question  of  what  to  do  is  a  very  practical  one,  to 
which  a  variety  of  answers  are  being  made.  There 
is  no  lack  of  adverse  criticism  of  the  church  for 
what  it  does  or  fails  to  do,  but  constructive  sug¬ 
gestions  are  not  so  freely  offered. 

A  four-fold  program. — It  would  seem  that  a  prac¬ 
tical  social  program  for  the  church  might  well 
include  four  main  parts.  First,  there  should  be 
instruction  about  the  essential  facts  of  the  social 
question.  It  should  be  impossible  for  anyone  to 
grow  up  under  the  instruction  of  the  Sunday  school 
and  church  and  remain  in  the  crass  ignorance  of 
social  facts  which  characterizes  most  church  mem¬ 
bers  to-day.  This  ignorance  about  such  matters 
as  housing,  minimum  wages,  and  child  labor  is  a 
most  serious  indictment  of  our  past  methods  of 
religious  education.  Such  instruction  may  well  be 
introduced  as  early  as  the  Junior  Department 
through  illustrations  and  stories  drawn  from  appro¬ 
priate  sources.  A  little  later,  when  altruistic  im¬ 
pulses  are  awaking,  more  detailed  information  may 
be  given.  The  International  Graded  Lessons  make 

163 


164  THE  SOCIAL  MESSAGE  OF  JESUS 


some  provision  through  the  course  entitled  “The 
World  a  Field  for  Service,”  in  the  later  high-school 
years.  In  young  people’s  and  business  men’s  classes 
more  specific  study  can  be  undertaken.  The  pur¬ 
pose  of  such  studies  will  be  to  present  sufficient 
details  to  insure  intelligent  understanding,  and 
especially  to  stimulate  genuine  interest  in  the 
many-sided  social  question. 

With  this  should  go  a  study  of  the  social  signifi¬ 
cance  of  the  gospel.  A  physician  who  knew  all 
the  symptoms  of  his  “case,”  but  had  no  knowledge 
of  the  remedies  to  apply,  could  render  his  patient 
little  service.  Here,  again,  the  appropriate  method 
is  to  make  a  social  approach  whenever  the  regular 
Sunday-school  lessons  permit,  and  to  undertake 
more  detailed  study  later. 

The  following  list  of  available  helps  and  books 
is  not  at  all  complete,  but  does  serve  to  indicate 
some  of  the  material  which  has  been  prepared  for 
these  two  lines  of  instruction:  For  a  general  pre¬ 
sentation  of  the  social  question,  the  first  and  fourth 
years  of  the  Senior  Graded  Lessons,  The  Social 
Principles  of  Jesus ,  by  Rauschenbusch,  and  The 
Social  Gospel ,  by  Mathews.  For  a  general  view  and 
more  detailed  study  of  certain  problems,  “The 
Gospel  of  the  Kingdom,”  a  series  edited  by  Dr. 
Josiah  Strong.  For  a  more  direct  examination  of 
the  teachings  themselves  may  be  added  The  Social 
Significance  of  the  Teachings  of  Jesus ,  by  Jenks; 
Peabody’s  Jesus  Christ  and  the  Social  Question ,  and 
Mathews’  Social  Teachings  of  Jesus .  The  list  of 
books  and  courses  dealing  with  specific  problems 
is  a  long  one,  and  includes  child  labor,  immigration, 
the  city,  housing,  and  many  other  topics.  The 


THE  CHANCE  OF  THE  CHURCH  165 


selection  of  a  text  for  a  given  class  will,  of  course, 
depend  upon  the  age  and  previous  study  along 
social  lines  of  its  members.  Usually  the  specific 
study  of  problems  mav  well  be  preceded  by  a  more 
general  course. 

In  the  third  place,  provision  must  be  made  for 
direct  cooperation  at  some  point.  What  form  this 
will  take  depends  somewhat  upon  the  location  of 
the  church  and  the  surrounding  community.  It 
should  establish  a  contact  between  workers  in  the 
church  and  some  of  the  immediate  problems.  This 
participation  is  necessary,  because  it  furnishes  a 
sort  of  laboratory.  Vital  contact  with  urgent  needs 
helps  to  lift  interest  off  the  plane  of  the  academic 
and  perfunctory.  Again,  such  participation  is 
necessary,  because  in  some  fields  the  church  alone 
can  render  a  disinterested  service.  The  officers  of 
a  municipal  league  may  be  suspected  (even  though 
unjustly)  of  furthering  their  own  political  interests. 
The  pressure  brought  to  bear  on  Legislatures  is 
well  known.  Comparatively,  the  church  as  an 
organization  is  untrammeled.  Such  direct  help  is 
also  a  guarantee  of  good  faith.  It  is  one  thing  to 
study  quietly  or  even  get  quite  indignant  over  con¬ 
ditions;  it  is  quite  another  to  get  out  and  fight  the 
abuse.  The  full  measure  of  the  church’s  action 
has  rather  frequently  been  to  pass  resolutions  which 
some  one  has  called  “empty  blusterings  at  an  absent 
foe.”  When  the  sincerity  of  Christian  interest  is 
questioned,  no  argument  is  quite  so  convincing 
as  some  constructive  effort  to  render  substantial  aid. 

A  good  many  Christian  people  have  been  pretty 
slow  to  see  the  chance  of  the  church  in  such  service. 
They  prefer  to  keep  goodness  in  general  terms  and 


166  THE  SOCIAL  MESSAGE  OF  JESUS 


are  timid  when  it  comes  to  specific  applications. 
They  like  to  do  all  their  religious  thinking  in  terms 
of  ancient  times.  Their  interest  in  Joseph  and  the 
famine  in  Egypt  is  keen  and  perennial,  but  they 
can  conceive  no  reason  for  the  church  being  con¬ 
cerned  with  the  underfed  multitudes  of  to-day. 
Christ’s  words  to  the  sinning  woman  whose  accusers 
went  out  one  by  one  while  he  wrote  in  the  sand, 
have  no  possible  connection  in  their  minds  with 
the  white-slave  traffic  of  America’s  cities. 

Finally,  the  church’s  greatest  chance  is  that  of 
inspiring  leadership.  The  answer  to  the  charge 
that  Christianity  has  failed  is  that,  on  the  contrary, 
it  is  the  only  thing  that  has  succeeded.  Some  say 
that  it  is  impotent  and  point  to  the  failure  of  the 
church  at  times.  They  forget  that  that  is  a  failure 
of  men  to  interpret  and  live  out  the  principles  of 
Christianity,  and  not  an  evidence  of  the  failure  of 
those  principles.  Freely  admitting  all  the  slowness 
and  lack  of  vision  on  the  part  of  church  members, 
and  remembering  all  the  times  when  cause  has  been 
given  for  criticism,  it  still  remains  true  that  the 
church  has  been  a  great  socializing  agency.  As 
Doctor  Bogardus  says,  “The  dynamic  of  Chris¬ 
tianity  has  operated  not  only  through  the  high 
ideals  which  it  furnishes,  .  .  .  but  also  through  the 
social  service  which  its  exponents  have  rendered.”1 
Statistics  collected  by  Mr.  Stelzle  show  that  92 
per  cent  of  associated  charity  workers,  88  per  cent 
of  social  settlement  workers,  and  71  per  cent  of 
general  social  workers  were  church  members.  These 
percentages  were  found  among  more  than  a  thousand 


1  Introduction  to  Sociology ,  p.  252. 


THE  CHANCE  OF  THE  CHURCH  167 


workers,  and  may  be  assumed  to  indicate  that  most 
social  workers  have  gained  at  least  a  portion  of  their 
vision  from  the  church. 

Among  the  institutions  of  our  civilization,  two 
stand  out  preeminently  in  which  the  social  wel¬ 
fare  has  been  preserved  against  the  attacks  of 
selfishness.  These  are  the  home  and  the  school. 
Roth  of  these  owe  their  present  position,  in  a  large 
degree,  to  the  church.  The  sacredness  of  the  family 
has  been  consistently  maintained  in  the  teaching 
of  the  church.  Marriage  has  been  held  sacred  by 
the  church,  even  in  the  minds  of  many  for  whom 
it  constitutes  the  sole  remaining  bond  with  any¬ 
thing  religious.  The  Christian  character  of  the 
family  has  been  so  successfully  defended  that  it 
remains  the  one  institution  of  human  life  which, 
with  any  appropriateness,  may  be  used  as  a  figure 
of  the  ideal  relation  between  God  and  men,  and 
between  man  and  man. 

So  in  the  case  of  education,  it  has  been  the  church 
which,  particularly  in  the  latter  days,  supplied  the 
ideals  and  frequently  the  material  means  as  well. 
Many  a  great  college  had  its  inception  in  the  faith 
and  labors  and  sacrifices  of  some  group  of  Chris¬ 
tian  men.  When  aggressive  interests  pushed  the 
frontiers  of  early  colonization  in  this  country  fur¬ 
ther  and  further  West,  it  was  the  churches  which 
stood  for  the  higher  interests  of  man’s  need.  Side 
by  side  stood  the  rude  chapel  and  the  log  school- 
house.  Indeed,  one  building  frequently  served  for 
both  purposes,  and  the  teacher’s  desk  became  on 
Sunday  the  preacher’s  pulpit.  Academies  were 
founded,  colleges  started,  and  the  young  people 
urged  to  make  use  of  them. 


1 68  THE  SOCIAL  MESSAGE  OF  JESUS 


Another  example  of  the  socializing  activities  of 
the  organized  church  is  found  in  its  missionary 
efforts.  The  men  and  women  who  with  unselfish 
fervor  have  penetrated  the  dark  corners  of  the 
earth  have  wrought  a  marvelous  transformation 
in  the  life  conditions  of  India,  China,  Africa,  and 
the  islands  of  the  sea.  They  have  overcome  super¬ 
stition,  planted  hospitals,  built  industries,  created 
literature,  invented  written  languages,  changed  cus¬ 
toms,  and  been  true  messengers  of  the  gospel  of 
transformed  life  as  the  inevitable  result  of  accept¬ 
ing  the  good  news  of  Jesus  Christ. 

It  is  not  too  much  to  say  that  the  growth  of 
altruism  through  the  centuries  has  been  mainly 
due  to  the  constant  insistence  by  the  church  on  the 
ideals  of  Jesus.  It  may  often  have  been  slow  to 
make  the  specific  applications  to  its  own  age  that 
it  should.  We  have  a  way  of  spending  more  sym¬ 
pathy  on  the  sorrows  of  Israel  under  Egyptian 
taskmasters  than  those  of  men  in  our  own  factories. 
But  nevertheless  the  ages  would  have  been  very 
dark  but  for  the  social  message  brought  by  the 
church. 

Idealism  the  creative  task  of  the  church. — The 

great  task  of  the  church  will  ever  be  to  give  ideals. 
It  will  continue  to  be  the  great  recruiting  station 
for  the  army  of  social  workers.  It  is  in  the  church 
that  men  and  women  are  most  effectively  intro¬ 
duced  to  Christ,  in  whose  spirit  they  go  forth  for 
service  to  their  fellows.  Men  have  been  imbued 
with  many  motives  in  the  fellowship  of  the  church, 
such  as  zeal  for  the  truth,  devotion  to  doctrine, 
interest  in  the  organization;  but  the  finest  motive 
they  have  found  there  is  the  impulse  to  unselfish 


THE  CHANCE  OF  THE  CHURCH  169 


service.  Thus  the  most  noble  service  of  the  church 
will  be  to  lift  the  whole  movement  of  social  recon¬ 
struction  on  to  a  higher  plane.  Most  of  the  social 
philosophies  and  plans  of  reform  have  put  a  strong 
emphasis  on  the  need  of  justice  in  such  matters  as 
wages,  taxes,  hours  of  labor,  and  the  like.  These 
are  the  points  at  which  social  injustice  and  mal¬ 
adjustment  are  evident,  and  it  is  therefore  quite 
natural  that  a  good  deal  of  attention  should  be 
paid  to  corrective  measures.  There  is,  however, 
danger  that  attention  will  be  paid  too  exclusively 
to  these  material  affairs.  It  is  very  probable  that 
the  adoption  of  some  of  the  plans  proposed  would 
indeed  result  in  improvement.  There  is  no  assur¬ 
ance,  however,  that  the  reconstructed  society  would 
not  be  still  grossly  materialistic.  Every  one  of 
these  plans  depends  for  its  ultimate  success  on  the 
qualities  of  brotherliness  and  unselfishness,  but 
provides  no  means  of  inculcating  these  virtues  in 
men’s  hearts.  That  is  the  contribution  of  supreme 
value  that  Jesus  makes.  He  not  only  aims  at 
social  improvement,  but  so  grips  the  lives  of  men 
that  they  are  enabled  to  come  up  to  his  high  ideals 
of  life. 

The  basic  principle  of  the  social  gospel  is  found 
in  these  words  of  Jesus:  “Whosoever  wishes  to 
save  his  life  will  lose  it,  and  whoever,  for  my  sake 
and  my  gospel’s,  loses  his  life  shall  find  it.”  He  is 
talking  here  not  of  martyrdom,  but  of  service.  It 
is  the  application  to  the  lives  of  his  followers  of 
his  own  rule  of  life:  “For  their  sakes  I  sanctify  my¬ 
self.”  The  key  to  all  acts  of  life  under  this  rule  is 
found  in  those  other  words  of  his:  “Thou  shalt 
love  thy  neighbor  as  thou  dost  thyself.”  And  a 


i7o  THE  SOCIAL  MESSAGE  OF  JESUS 


final  success  is  assured  in  these  words  of  encourage¬ 
ment,  “Fear  not,  little  flock,  for  it  is  your  Father’s 
good  will  to  give  you  the  kingdom.” 

Exercises 

1.  Is  the  church  a  valuable  social  agency? 

2.  How  do  local  churches  vary  in  their  attitude 

toward  social  service?  Why? 

3.  What  connection  is  there  between  such  institu¬ 

tions  as  the  Y.  M.  C.  A.,  Red  Cross,  and 
rescue  missions  as  social  agents  and  the 
church? 

4.  Does  the  church  have  a  social  responsibility? 

5.  Why  do  nonreligious  people  wish  to  be  married 

by  clergymen? 

6.  Explain:  The  family  is  the  most  appropriate 

figure  of  the  relation  between  God  and  man. 

7.  Show  how  the  church  has  maintained  man’s 

highest  interests  on  civilization’s  frontiers. 

8.  Name  five  social  results  of  foreign  missions. 

9.  Mention  some  hindrances  to  the  growth  of  so¬ 

cial  vision  in  the  church. 

10.  What  are  some  of  the  dynamics  of  social  action? 

11.  How  would  you  bring  social  ideas  to  a  class  of 

fifteen-year-old  boys?  Contrast  the  social 
work  of  a  church  in  a  residence  district  with 
one  in  a  foreign  population. 

12.  How  can  the  rural  church  serve  its  community? 

Topics  for  Further  Study 

1.  The  proper  relation  between  the  church  and  the 

various  specific  social  agencies. 

2.  The  Y.  M.  C.  A.,  Red  Cross,  and  rescue  mission, 


THE  CHANCE  OF  THE  CHURCH  171 


considered  as  the  church  specializing  in  social 
service. 

3.  Foreign  missions — a  socializing  force. 

4.  Religion  as  the  dynamic  of  social  work. 

5.  The  accomplishments  of  the  church  in  social 

service. 

6.  A  program  of  social  activities  for  the  Sunday 

school. 


Suggested  Readings 

Mathews,  The  Social  Gospel,  Chapter  XVIII. 
Rauschenbusch,  Christianity  and  the  Social  Crisis , 
pp.  319-324,  329-342. 

Report  of  the  Federal  Council  of  the  Churches  of 
Christ  in  America,  The  Church  and  Modern  Indus¬ 
try.  (December,  1908.) 

Ward,  The  Social  Creed  of  the  Churches. 


BIBLIOGRAPHY 


The  following  books  are  suggested  as  a  basis  for  a 
reference  library.  Many  other  titles  might  well  be  added, 
especially  in  the  definite  field  covered  in  Part  Two.  Some 
of  these  will  be  found  in  the  “Suggested  Readings”  fol¬ 
lowing  each  chapter.  It  is  very  desirable,  of  course,  that 
the  entire  list  should  be  available,  but  if  this  is  not 
possible,  the  first  seven  are  the  ones  most  frequently 
referred  to: 

Mathews.  The  Social  Gospel,  The  American  Baptist 
Publication  Society,  Philadelphia. 

Rauschenbusch.  Christianizing  the  Social  Order ,  The 
Macmillan  Company,  New  York. 

Peabody.  Jesus  Christ  and  the  Social  Question ,  The 
Macmillan  Company,  New  York. 

Weymouth.  New  Testament  in  Modern  Speech,  The  Pil¬ 
grim  Press,  Boston. 

Finney.  Personal  Religion  and  the  Social  Awakening,  The 
Abingdon  Press,  New  York. 

Batten.  The  Social  Task  of  Christianity,  Fleming  H. 
Revell  Company,  Chicago. 

Whitaker.  The  Gospel  at  Work  in  Modern  Life,  American 
Baptist  Publication  Society,  Philadelphia. 

Jenks.  Political  and  Social  Significance  of  Life  and  Teach¬ 
ings  of  Jesus,  Association  Press,  New  York. 

Rauschenbusch.  Christianity  and  the  Social  Crisis,  The 
Macmillan  Company,  New  York. 

Rauschenbusch.  The  Social  Principles  of  Jesus,  Associa¬ 
tion  Press,  New  York. 


172 


BIBLIOGRAPHY 


i73 


Stelzle.  American  Social  and  Religious  Conditions,  Flem¬ 
ing  H.  Re  veil  Company,  Chicago. 

Ward.  The  Social  Creed  of  the  Churches,  The  Abingdon 
Press,  New  York. 

Taylor.  Religion  in  Social  Action .  Dodd,  Mead  8c  Com¬ 
pany,  New  York. 

Kent.  The  Social  Teachings  of  the  Prophets  and  Jesus, 
Charles  Scribner’s  Sons,  New  York. 

Bogardus.  Introduction  to  Sociology,  The  University  of 
Southern  California  Press,  Los  Angeles. 

Addams.  Democracy  and  Social  Ethics,  The  Macmillan 
Company,  New  York. 

Ward.  The  Social  Center ,  D.  Appleton  8c  Company, 
New  York. 


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